Conformations at Esther Klein Gallery

Gallery Guide

Conformations, alpaca fiber, video, acrylic enclosure, stainless steel

The title of Splan’s exhibition references the “conformational states” of proteins that distinguish their folded and unfolded states. Conformations uses the familiar material of wool as a tangible metaphor for less tangible abstract biological concepts. Raw fiber is situated in contrast to carded fiber that is now ready to be spun. The video depicts the tools and processes used to transform the wool from one form to another—raw, carded, spun. The change in form allows new potential for use, drawing analogy to the role a conformational state plays in protein function.

Needle in a Haystack (Book & Photographs), artist book / chromogenic prints

Needle in a Haystack is a document of Splan’s time at Integral Molecular during her Bioart Residency at the Science Center. In the book, photographs of the laboratory are paired with appropriated texts that interrogate the intersections of science and culture, biology and humanity, the exotic and the mundane. Selected photographs from the book are included in the exhibition.

Remote Entanglements, wind data networked microcontroller, fan, infrared sensor, vinyl wall text

Faint text on a wall invites viewers to come close to read “our distance allows our intimacy”. The phrase refers to the complexities of existence in the biotechnological age where understanding of our own bodies and the bodies of others is increasingly mediated by technology. The sculpture blows a breeze in the viewers face as they read the text. The speed of the networked fan intermittently adjusts to the wind conditions at the location of one of the companies that donated the fiber of their laboratory animals during Splan’s residency.

Suspended, video loop

This video infinitely loops a brief moment in a common laboratory protocol where cells are “suspended” or mixed for cell culturing. During her Bioart residency, Splan recorded several video vignettes that isolate the often repetitive labor of both humans and machines in the biotech laboratory. Suspended was recorded while shadowing scientist Aubrey Bryan in the laboratory at Integral Molecular.

Contested Territories, llama feces, Twitter actuated vortex mixer, networked microcontroller

This modified laboratory machine activates when Twitter hashtags associated with the culturally contested status of Science are tweeted. As the networked device intermittently checks for the latest tweets, the mixer’s movement materializes the sociopolitical complexities of language. Here, the mere mention of #globalwarming or #diversity agitates tubes filled with laboratory animal feces. Since taking office, the Trump administration has controversially advised how to improve the chances of receiving research funding with the suggestion to avoid words and phrases like “vulnerable”, “diversity”, “entitlement”, “transgender”, “fetus”, “evidence-based”, and “science-based".  The administration has also refused to sign statements that mention “climate change”. Virologist, Ben Doranz added the timely contribution of #vaccination to this growing list of terms.

Lumen  (Sculpture), llama and alpaca fiber, wood platform, vinyl text

Lumen choreographs viewers’ movements to sit on a hooked rug made with the hand-spin fiber of laboratory llamas and alpacas. In biology, the lumen is the interior part of a cellular structure where a protein is folded and modified. Instructions accompanying the rug compel the viewer to perform this folding action. Sitting on the rug engages viewers with unseen materialities and labor of biotechnology as they touch the yarn and listen to the accompanying sound component.

Lumen (Sound), TRT 5:55, sound on headphones

Lumen layers sound recordings made in Integral Molecular’s biotech laboratory. Robotic movements of machines, gurgling dish drains, and human interactions come together to create a sonic tour that immerses the listener in the soundscape of the laboratory.

Boundary, llama fiber, orphaned keys, vinyl wall text

Boundary asks viewers to “move gently” through a doorway veiled in yarn spun from laboratory llamas. This prompt to pass from one space to another is paired with text appropriated from “Molecular and Cell Biology For Dummies” by Rene Fester Kratz. The modified excerpt highlights the language of biological metaphors grounded in narratives of national security. As viewers pass through the doorway, they are greeted with text referencing “international boundaries” and “customs officers”. While moving the yarns, chiming keys at the end of each strand alert visitors inside the room of their entry.

Sit Around and Wait, neon, hay bales

During her Bioart residency at Integral Molecular, Splan was able to observe a spectrum of laboratory work that ranged from the excitement of discovery to the tedium of experiments. During one experiment, scientist Joe Stafford started the centrifuge and jokingly commented, “sit around and wait”. The phrase rendered in neon invites viewers to settle into the hay bale seating to do exactly that.

Transformation Timer, microcontroller, motor, llama fiber, orphaned keys

In biology, bacterial transformation is a process of introducing foreign DNA into bacteria. This motorized sculpture intermittently rotates to agitate a cascading arrangement of colliding keys. The motor is timed to rotate every 90 seconds, the duration it takes in some lab protocols for E. coli cells to take up a DNA plasmid during bacterial transformation.

Tickling the Bonds, animation

This screen-recorded animation was created in Pymol, a molecular modeling software program that Splan was introduced to by scientist Thomas Charpentier. By using the “sculpting” feature in the software in unconventional ways, the animation is a collaborative doodle of sorts between the artist’s hand and the bonding interactions of the molecular structures that are being disrupted. As protein structures are manipulated, the software renders uncanny disturbances between neighboring amino-acid residues.

Image After Image, latex paint on walls

Certain walls in the gallery are painted the bluish-green color of surgical scrubs. This color arose from the notion that it would negate the after image created when looking away from the bloody color of internal organs seen while performing surgery.