The Synthenesis project envisages a near-future scenario in which people will be able to grow spirulina algae as a food source in their daily lives, proposing how living machines can synthesise Spirulina pills to improve body and mental health.
The artwork depicts a hybrid organ of human and non-human body, synthesizing pearls of Spirulina. It employs a spherification reaction, enclosing Spirulina liquid in a gel membrane of sodium alginate and calcium chloride. After a few minutes, an outer layer is formed, creating flexible, edible Spirulina pills. Combining DIY biology with soft robotics, glassblowing, and bioplastic membranes, the artwork reflects on the values of future society and the relationship between humans, nature, and technology.
Synthenesis questions what we can do to shape the future, addressing topics of care, decision-making and empowerment. How can living machines grow food, be integrated into our spaces and rituals, and improve planetary health?
Synthenesis / Fara Peluso - Photo: Fara Peluso
Exhibit
Synthenesis
Fara Peluso (DE/IT)
Ticket //
POSTCITY Ticket, ONE DAY PASS, FESTIVALPASS, FESTIVALPASS+
Synthenesis
Fara Peluso (IT/DE)
The Synthenesis workshop explores how to build a DIY bioreactor for cultivating spirulina microalgae and producing pills. In this participatory format, participants will envision shaping the future by promoting collective practices of care and decision-making connected to well-being and empowerment.
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Photo: Eymelt Sehmer
Fara Peluso
Fara Peluso is a bio artist, designer, and researcher with a strong interest in biology and micro algae, enquiring into their agency and poetics through a speculative design. Peluso wants to raise critical questions about the design of new tools and how they can tell the story of possible future scenarios about the quality of our lives, attitudes, and choices. In 2022 Peluso was in residency for the S+T+ARTS center in Linz and since April 2024 she has been a researcher at the Bio Design Lab of HfG Karlsruhe.
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Quo Artis
Quo Artis is an international nonprofit organization based in Barcelona, founded in 2015, and dedicated to fostering connections between art, science, technology, and ecology. It serves as a conduit between professionals across these fields, curating, coordinating, and facilitating exploratory journeys, symposiums, exhibitions, and educational workshops. The foundation also oversees commissioned project development and conducts research at the intersection of art and the loss of biodiversity.
