Collecting Cultures

Hello to you and the 90%  made up of microbial organisms that host you. Did you know that you are only ten percent human? Only ten percent of the cells in your body contain composite information. The other ninety percent consists of bacteria and fungi that happily digest your food and take care of your immune system. You and your internal ecosystem go way back, probably about 200,000 years. The bacteria evolved along with the human race. They live not only in you, but also on your skin. From birth, bacteria begin to climb over your physical body and cover you from your toe to the inside of your throat. Every action, every habit, your entire cultural identity is shared in this invisible way.
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Revealing the invisible world of bacteria
During the past 5 years, we established a database with over 12.000 cultures ranging from the Netherlands, Italy to Belgium. The bacterial cultures were then grown to reveal the invisible world of fungi and bacteria that shape the various patterns on our skin.
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Artwork exhibited within Brainport Eindhoven region
We will in the near future exhibit a work of art, designed on tunnels in the Brainport Eindhoven region. The visible shapes and colors of the paintings are representing the diversity within the invisible identities collected. Besides functioning as an aesthetically pleasing surprise for by-passers, functional goals are simultaneously met: the paintings are protecting the concrete against weathering, preventing vandalism and secure social safety. Vincent Huibers (Vincent Huibers Graffiti Agency) and Pim Bens (Vlakwerk) supervised the painting process.
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BioArt Laboratories stimulates deep-thinking and personal reflection on current social issues through the arts: Are the ecosystems that we humans unconsciously carry with us a reflection of our cultural identity? Is our identity framed through geographical borders? Or is our invisible world diverse and inclusive?
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In collaboration with Gemeente Eindhoven, project Overbruggen, GGZE, Internationale School Eindhoven and Woensel-West Eindhoven.