Bio Play

Material Beliefs blur the boundaries between material culture and bioengineering research, designing speculative products that embody emerging technologies

How can playfulness expand horizons in bioengineering? What happens when we open up laboratories to the whim of undefined ends, exploration and wonder? By expanding current laboratory research through speculative designs, Material Beliefs aim to create prototypes that redraw the intersection between science, engineering and design and lead to new realms of thought.

'Bonsai Cells' explores how the shape, network and colour of stem cells contribute to their efficiency in regeneration and distinguish them from diseased cells. What are the benefits and dangers of designers engaging with medical science? Explore your own reaction to a future of control and manipulation of cell patterns and shapes.

Share a room with the 'Carnivorous Domestic Entertainment Robots' and their creators. These robots are devices for utility, drama and entertainment, existing in a similar way to an exotic pet such as a snake or a lizard. How should we react to robots that prey on living creatures and is there an appropriate response to a contrived life-and-death scenario? How should we regard the distinction between function and spectacle?

Discuss these intriguing projects and question the novel collaborations that conceived them.

Speakers

Bonsai Cells
Susana Soares, Goldsmiths, University of London
Dr Julie Daniels and Anna Harris, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology
Carnivorous Domestic Entertainment Robots
James Auger, Jimmy Loizeau and Aleksandar Zivanovic, Goldsmiths, University of London
Facilitator: Laura Sillars, Head of Programmes, Foundation for Art and Creative Technology