Awakening, 2012
Cellular photographic work
I make my art because I wish to explore the beauty and complexity of the cellular world using the power of scientific discovery and methodology. I choose to present the unseen for consideration. The cells in these photographs have been grown from different kinds of stem cells, and represent a progression in the accumulation of knowledge that has led us to this moment, where scientists now understand how to reprogram adult cells to become embryonic-like stem cells. There are gaps in this understanding as it relates to our ability to cure disease and degeneration. These dark places are where human imagination lies, teeming with desire to control our biology for myriad ends. Crawling over the abyss is the cell, growing in a dish liberated from the control of the body, tiny unit of ourselves and all living things.
Special thanks to Dr. Derek van der Kooy, Centre for Cellular and Biomolecular Research, University of Toronto.