Twelve teams of artists/designers & scientists were competing again this year for the Bio Art & Design Awards, where they pitch their grand plans to the jury and public. Finally, three winning projects were selected, and they are as diverse as they are captivating. Timely and urgent, lively and sensitive—these are the keywords linking the three bio art and design projects that each earned a 2024 BAD Award.

Microbial Prophetesses – Artist Carla Alcalà Badias & professor Laura Villanueva of the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research

In Microbial Prophetesses, the duo delves into the microscopic world, revealing the essential yet often overlooked labor of microbes. Their work underscores how these tiny organisms sustain life and how humans exploit their functions for capitalist gains. ‘By combining sculpture with sonification and being both a site-specific piece as well as a gallery piece, the project may even go on to have scientific impact on the study of bacteria’, said the jury.

Ecotonal Beings – NVISIBLE.STUDIO/Emilia Tapprest, Sophie Mars, Victor Evink, Samar Khan, Leonie Cornips

Ecotonal Beings seeks to bridge the gap between humans and other species through speculative interfaces that enhance embodied communication. This ambitious project aims to develop new ways of interacting with different species, focusing on movement, haptics, sound, and vision. It touches the deep-felt sentiment of humans to interact with other species and understand the core of being that other by being able to communicate with them.

The Myth of Bomb Craters – Artist Liu Shuai & Moe Abbas from Utrecht University

The Myth of Bomb Craters transforms sites of destruction into symbols of regeneration and hope. By exploring bioremediation through plants in war-torn areas, this project presents a poetic yet practical approach to healing landscapes scarred by conflict.