Junctures - The Journal for Thematic Dialogue

Brook, Lesley

English

Exposing an Art Audience to Science: Art and Space Exhibition Case Study

Art and Genetics, Art and Genetics

Colophon

Genetics Exhibition, Art and

106 Junctures 18, December 2017
cOLLABORATIONS BETWEEN ARTISTS AND ScIENTISTS
Exhibition Installation: Art and Genetics 
Project 2017 Exhibition
The Project for 2017 was self-selected, as the University of Otago is hosting the Genetics Society 
of Australasia Annual Conference, together with the New Zealand Society for Biochemistry and 
Molecular Biology. It is always hoped that not only artists and scientists can gain from this creative 
association, extending their respective cognitive and visual worlds, but that they can both offer the 
public, the community in which the artists and scientists work and live, as well as future artists and 
scientists—young people of today—an opportunity and incentive to look afresh, or anew, into aspects 
of their own bodies or worlds of enquiry to which they had previously paid little attention - Peter 
Stupples and Dr Ruth Napper, 2017.
All measurements are in centimetres except where indicated. Photographs by Pam McKinlay.
Tyler McInnes and anneMarIe Hope-cross 
Number 1 - 2. Annemarie Hope-Cross, Hope, 2017, cyanotype with gold leaf, Image: 84.0 x 59.4.
Tyler’s work profiles DNA methylation in colon cancer, and comparing it to the DNA methylation 
profiles of healthy tissue. DNA methylation works like a padlock – it shuts down a piece of DNA 
and makes sure that it cannot be read or activated. Like DNA, music is a set of instructions. How 
fast or slow to play an instrument, which notes to play, and how loudly or softly, and when to stop. 
Annemarie has used this analogy to reinterpret the work Tyler is doing.
ann-KaTHrIn scHlesselMann and BecKy caMeron
Number 3 - 5. Becky Cameron, a delicate balance (detail), 2017, paper, wire, aluminium, ~150 x 
100 x 100.
Black-fronted terns, tara pirohe, are as unique to New Zealand as the more famous counterparts 
like kiwi or kea. Unfortunately, terns are in decline and are currently classified as Endangered. Their 
habitat is under threat due to water abstraction and invasive weeds, and black-fronted terns have 
low breeding success due to introduced and increasing number of native predators. In creating a 
107Junctures 18, December 2017
hanging mobile in response to Ann’s research, Becky wanted to reflect their interconnectivity, and 
also their fragility and vulnerability. In the work presented here, a flock of fragile paper terns hang 
in an uneasy and shifting balance with a single black-backed gull.
MacKenzIe lovegrove and BrITTany sue Mason 
Number 6 - 8. Brittany Sue Mason, Honeycomb Necklace, 2017, bronze, sterling silver, glass, 
beeswax.
Brittany Sue Mason, Mackenzie Lovegrove’s project involves trying to understand how honeybees 
evolved “eusociality” – the social structure where one female reproduces and the others rear her 
offspring. In a bee hive, the queen lays eggs and produces a pheromone (a chemical cue) that 
stops all of her daughters from reproducing. Brittany’s interest in apiculture inspired her to create 
jewellery as a type of non-verbal form of communication.
naTalIe ForsdIcK and MIcHelle WIlKInson 
Number 9 - 10. Michelle Wilkinson, A Conglomeration of Stilts: MW2017-01-01, Pure Poaka (left), 
MW2017-01-09 Pure Kakī (right), 2017, fine silver, 925 silver, copper, aluminium, heat shrink tube, 
polymer clay, resin, steel pin. Series of nine broaches, each 15.0 x 5.0 x 1.0.
In this collaboration, Natalie and Michelle investigated hybridisation between an endemic endangered 
New Zealand bird, the Kakī (Black Stilt) and the self-introduced Poaka (Pied Stilt). When Kakī numbers 
have been historically low, interbreeding between the two species has occurred, and has resulted in 
fertile hybrids that display a range of plumage nodes intermediate to those of the pure black Kakī 
and the mixed white and black Poaka. Each brooch depicts the black and white plumage of the 
birds on the front, and the back, which represents the hidden, genetic profile of each, is made from 
a different metal alloy: pure silver for the Kakī, pure copper for the Poaka, and varying proportions 
of silver/copper alloy for the hybrid birds. 
davId HuTcHInson and cHanel Taylor
Number 11. Chanel Taylor, Journeys (detail), 2017, watercolour, perspex, digital print of scanned 
watercolour on Perspex. Various dimensions. 
In 2007, long-lived coherences in exciton transport were observed in the Fenna-Mathews-Olsen 
(FMO) complex. FMO is a protein complex found in light-harvesting green sulphur bacteria, and is 
responsible for the transfer of energy from the antenna to the reaction centre in photosynthesis. 
It does this with near unity efficiency. The implication is that perhaps nature could have utilized 
quantum effects to enhance energy transport. Chanel’s work imagines what the inside of green 
sulphur bacteria might look like, especially in regard to the FMO complex  and represents the 
simultaneous pathways the exciton takes on its journey to the reaction centre.
108 Junctures 18, December 2017
padMInI parsaTHaraTHy and JosepHIne WarIng 
Number 12. Josephine Waring, The Answers Lie Within Our Hands, 2017, ceramics, map.
The work in this exhibition was made in conjunction with Padmini Parthasarathy, from the Department 
of Biochemistry who is currently researching the SLC2A9 gene. Gout, a painful inflammatory 
arthritis, is highly prevalent in the New Zealand Māori and Pacific (Polynesian) people. The basic 
pathophysiological feature of gout is the deposition of monosodium urate crystals in the synovial fluid 
of the joints following longstanding hyperuricemia (elevated blood urate levels). Hands are probably 
our most important tool, and we describe them in many different ways: large, strong, capable, warm, 
cold, limp, small, slender, elegant, lady-like, delicate, work-worn, arthritic. 
Megan grIFFITHs - guesT arTIsT 
Number 13. Megan Griffiths, Who am I?, 2015, synthetic fabric, acrylic, 196 x 60.
Who am I? is an art work exploring the inexorable decline of memory and abilities of people facing 
dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. The cause of late onset Alzheimer’s Disease is not yet well 
understood, as it is likely a combination of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors that affect 
a person’s risk for developing the disease.
IaIn laMonT and sue nunn 
Number 14 - 15. Sue Nunn, Beauty is the Beast, 2017, fabric, polyester batting, cardboard, assorted 
threads, beads and sequins, ~250 x 150.
Cystic fibrosis is the most common inherited disease in New Zealand. Sufferers have a range of 
symptoms that are managed with medications, regular physiotherapy and hospitalisation if required. 
The lungs develop a thick sticky mucus that can become infected by Pseudomonas aeruginosa 
bacteria. These infections are difficult to cure, affecting the general health of those with the disease. 
In this artwork, Sue Nunn hopes to draw a parallel between science and cystic fibrosis by using a 
series of words CF sufferers have provided.  The beauty of the bacteria growing in the lab is in stark 
contrast to the ugliness of how it manifests itself in cystic fibrosis sufferers.
nIcola dennIs and eMIly davIdson 
Number 16 - 18. Emily Davidson, Genetic Interpreter (detail), 2017, wood, paint, noise, data
Nicola’s work involves building mathematical models. In general, science results in the generation 
of meaningful numbers that explain a tiny piece of the world around us.
On their own, these numbers are useful to a small number of people but  
collectively these numbers can do more. The collaboration between Emily and Nicola translated 
information between different forms and which operated by means of ‘breeding’ data and seeing 
what came of it.
109Junctures 18, December 2017
denIse MarTInI and erIc scHusser 
Number 19. Eric Schusser, Kākā Genetics (detail), 2017, grid of 35 pigment print photographs on 
archival paper. Each photograph 19.5 x 29.0.
The kākā is a large forest parrot that is only found in New Zealand. Kākā used to be extremely 
abundant and widespread, but numbers have declined sharply in the past 150 years. Genetic 
diversity is an important predictor of the overall health and potential for the lasting survival of a 
species. Conservation genetics is a branch of biology that investigates genetic diversity in endangered 
species. Denise’s project aims at investigating the modern and historical genetic diversity of kākā 
across its geographical distribution, in order to support its current and long-term future management. 
eMMa WyeTH and HeraMaaHIna eKeTone 
Number 20. Heramaahina Eketone, Te pūrākau tūtahi (The Whole Story), 217 drawing) ink on paper.
Dr Wyeth teaches and conducts research into Māori Public Health. Her undergraduate
and post-graduate studies were in genetics,  focusing on Māori views of science, specifically including 
genetic research. Tikanga  provides  a  framework  through  which  Māori  engage  with  ethical  issues 
and  consider  the effects  research  have  on  their cultural values and relationships.
JulIa HorsFIeld and cHrIsTIne Keller / paM McKInlay 
Number 21. Christine Keller / Pam McKinlay, Heir Loom (detail), 2017, merino wool, hand woven 
on counterbalance loom.
A recently fertilised embryo contains rapidly dividing cells that have the potential to develop into 
any part of the body. One of life’s biggest mysteries is how cells in the early embryo decide what 
to be. Cohesin is a large ring-shaped multi-protein than encircles DNA. In doing so, it can organize 
loops of DNA in the nucleus. The clustering can be measured by looking at the contacts between 
DNA sections, and this is visualized by a red-and-white ‘heatmap’.
JulIa HorsFIeld and paM McKInlay / Jesse-JaMes pIcKery 
Number 22 - 25. Pam McKinlay / Jesse-James Pickery, He puira hirahira (A Special Chromosome), 
2017. Muehlenbeckia, muka, three gauges of monofilament, plaster mask and Pungao o te Ira 
(Energy of the Genes), digital moving image.
Cohesin proteins are essential for both chromosome duplication and for controlling the expression 
of specific developmental genes influenceing how  genes switch on or off. McKinlay and Pickery 
imagined an unfolding chromosome, the unravelling of DNA, bound into a rigid shape, at the 
moment of stasis - some sections closed in the twist of the double helix and sections with free 
roaming loops in space and time. Bindings, interstices and flashing between them the fleeting web 
of cellular communication.
110 Junctures 18, December 2017
MIKe paulIn and davId green 
Number 26. David Green, Tyger Tyger, 2017, single channel video, MOS.
Organisms are constructed from a small set of structural motifs that emerge spontaneously in fluids 
and soft materials. Now armed with automated sequencing machines and supercomputers, we can 
simulate the molecular networks that operate during the development of whole organisms. This is 
such a spectacular achievement that we may be forgiven for not noticing, or at least not mentioning, 
that it does not explain how morphology arises during development. David’s work creates a world 
of pattern formation and animal morphogenesis.
naTalIe ForsdIcK and MadIson Kelly 
Number 27 - 29. Madison Kelly, Kakī Reared and Sampled (detail), 2017, charcoal and shelves on 
gallery wall, ~100 x 40.
The key concept behind much of conservation genetics is fairly simple – that small population size 
may result in low genetic variation, and consequently, reduced ability of the population to adapt to 
future change. Consequences of inbreeding, hybridisation, and population isolation all build on this 
main concept. The drawings by Madison are exercises in finding physical analogues for the urgency 
permeating conservation genetics, as well as the restriction, hybridisation, and impermanence 
facing the Kakī population. 
Tanya MaJor and MarIon Wassenaar 
Number 30 - 31. Marion Wassenaar, Ties That Bind, 2017, mixed media, four framed works.
Gout is a distressing health problem in Aotearoa, New Zealand, affecting an increasing number 
of (mainly) New Zealand Māori and Pacific Island men, with South Auckland now regarded as ‘the 
gout capital of the world’.  Gout is a serious and debilitating type of arthritis. Gout attacks are 
excruciatingly painful and happen sporadically. If left untreated gout can destroy joints and lead to 
significant disability.  Gout is an inherited condition. Someone with a family history of gout is twice 
as likely to develop gout compared to someone with no family history of gout. This is because gout 
is a genetic disease. 
adaM rance and vIcTorIa McInTosH 
Number 32 - 33. Victoria McIntosh, “Chapter 30: Diseases Peculiar to Women”*, 2017, vintage 
foundation garment, fabric and stitch, 86.0 x 38.0 cm 
Adam Rance is currently investigating the role of Anrogen Receptor signaling in Triple Negative 
Breast Cancer. This is a highly aggressive subtype of breast cancer diagnosed in 10-25% of patients, 
leaving no established options for systemic therapy other than chemotherapy. Victoria McIntosh’s 
work looks at body image, aging and the damaged body. Her foundation garment work was a way 
of bringing the whole body back into view after spending time in Adam’s laboratory where research 
is conducted at the cellular level.
111Junctures 18, December 2017
naTalIe ForsdIcK and BrIgeTTe KaMMleIn
Number 34. Brigette Kammlein, Kakī, On the Cutting Edge, 2017, woodcut, drypoint, solar etching 
and coloured pencils on Fabriano paper, 62.0 x 36.0.
Accurate information is essential for species conservation, allowing appropriate decision-making not 
just to prevent extinctions, but to ensure species recovery. The Kakī (Black Stilt) is considered to be 
the world’s rarest wading bird, and had declined to around 23 birds in 1981. Kakī are black, long-
legged members of the avocet and stilt family, they have black bills, crimson legs and because they 
are so few, they hybridise with the pied stilt. Without the management of DoC and further research, 
only about 1% off all black stilt eggs laid in the wild would survive to reproduce.
aaron JeFFs and JoHanna zellMer 
Number 35 - 37. Johanna Zellmer, ACCess mATTers - Trio (detail), 2017, San Marino Commemorative 
Sterling Silver 10 Euro coin: 2004 Summer Olympics Athens, forged, stamped and punched; various 
Illumina flow cells, cut and fused. 180 x 105 x 2mm.
Genetics is the study of heredity, and how the transmission of the genes encoded within our DNA 
from one generation to the next contributes to normal health and development. DNA stores biological 
information; knowing someone’s DNA sequence allows geneticists to identify the differences 
between individuals that make us who we are. Sequencing entire populations allows advances in 
diagnosing and treating disease. DNA sequence can also be used to trace ancestry and ethnicity, 
and personally identify an individual; information that can be used to exploit and alienate people 
for political, cultural, or religious reasons. Identity Politics offers a relevant insight into Johanna’s 
work as a craft practitioner.
aMy doWdle and Jo sT BaKer 
Number 38 - 39. Jo St Baker, Awakening (detail, All for Love), 2017, animated 1.49 min film loop 
projected on chiffon print scarf. Original painting: All for Love. Acrylic on canvas. 140 x 140.
From the beginning of life itself, development is directed by maternal factors left in the egg at the time 
of fertilisation; during this time, the embryo’s own genes remain silent. As development progresses, 
the embryo awakens and switches on its genetic program. During this transition, the embryo truly 
comes of age: it begins to shut off the maternal influence as its own genes become active. Amy and 
Jo both interpreted the triggered switch as an analogy for flowering, blossoming, or transforming 
into an awakened state, likened to that of a child transitioning to adulthood.
112 Junctures 18, December 2017
MarTIn Kennedy and JulIe WHITeFIeld 
Number 40 - 42. Julie Whitefield, Above the Threshold (detail), 2017, acrylic paint on MDF. 
Part i: 175 x 45 cm x varying heights (85.5 - 138 cm). Part ii: 175 x 31 x 82. 
For as long as the structure of DNA has been known, it has been used in art. This is part of the 
fascination with DNA, as the key molecule which underpins and transmits life, that makes it so 
alluring and prone to creative interpretation. The Manhattan plot is an icon of early 21st century 
human genetics, that Julie used this as a key theme for her work. In the world of genomics, data 
visualisation and presentation is both an art form and a vital key to understanding.
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Exhibition Installation: Art and Genetics Project 2017 Exhibition

Mason, Brittany Sue

53Junctures 18, December 2017
BRITTANY SUE MASON
Honeycomb Jewels 
An ongoing interest in apiculture and perhaps a cross-pollination of concepts has joined art jeweller 
Brittany Sue Mason and geneticists Mackenzie Lovegrove and Gertje Petersen. Honeybees have 
been a topic of Brittany’s work for some time, both in studio practice as well as in the “honey house”. 
For the past year, Brittany has been working with a local beekeeper,1 helping to prepare the hives 
for next season.
Figure 1. Brittany Sue Mason, Honeycomb Necklace, bronze, sterling silver, glass, beeswax.
54 Junctures 18, December 2017
BRITTANY SUE MASON
Through the hours spent scraping the honeycomb from the frames, I think of the similarities between 
finishing my jewellery work for sale. Each scrape of honeycomb from the wooden frame is like the 
file against the rough edge of freshly cut silver. Slowly the hive tool polishes the remaining beeswax 
against the frame, like burnishing the edges of metal to a shiny smooth finish. As the removed 
beeswax heats slowly on the stove, the smell of honey fills the room. Even hours after being home 
from work, I could still smell the scent of honey embedded into the fibres of my clothes. I thought 
how delightful it would be to capture this aroma and take it with you everywhere.
This sparked the beginning of my bee-inspired studio practice in early 2016. I was first intrigued by 
the hexagonal patterned structures of the honeycomb, surprised by the geometric shapes created 
by these tiny creatures. How could such a small organic life form construct such rigid and uniform 
patterns? The female worker bees produce malleable wax platelets from the wax glands on the 
underside abdomen sections. Mixed with oral glandular secretions, the wax produced by the worker 
bees is chewed and ready for use.2 There is an architectural basis for this construction of regularly 
shaped and spaced parallel hexagon tunnels — to achieve maximum effective use of space.3
Figure 2. Work in process with organic honeycomb, glass gemstones.
55Junctures 18, December 2017
Honeybees fulfill all the criteria for a eusocial society: a colony includes only overlapping generations 
of one family (dimorphism), a division of labour exists within the worker caste, and they have the 
ability to communicate messages about worthwhile food sources using motion signals. 4
 
Listening to geneticists’ research, I began to question my attendance as an artist, until I heard 
Mackenzie’s description of the honeybees’ ability to communicate using pheromone messaging. 
Mackenzie explained her research into the eusocial society of honeybees and specifically 
the presence of the Queen Mandibular Pheromone.5 The social structures and politics within 
communities of honeybees is surprisingly advanced! As an artist, I think jewellery is a form of non-
verbal communication on many levels: between the maker, the wearer, and the viewer. As a maker, 
the issue of the honeybees weighs heavily on my heart; the wearer keeps the matter close to them 
by wearing the jewellery on their body and engaging potential viewers in the topic as well. Thinking 
back to my work with the bee-man and the aroma of honey in the air, I had an epiphany — honey-
scented jewellery!
I sourced two brood chambers from a hive, thanks to the local beekeeper. I removed the honeycomb 
from each frame and cut thin cross-sections. The most aesthetically pleasing honeycombs were 
selected for bronze casting. The casting process adds to the preciousness of the forms by reinforcing 
the structural integrity and lasting permanence of the objects. The process of making remains 
obvious throughout this wearable series; casting directly from the organic beeswax, the knife edge 
on the back sides of the forms is still visible under the soft layer of protective wax. The gemstones 
embellishing the honeycomb structures are repurposed from my grandmother’s costume jewellery 
and intended purely as decoration. Lastly, each object is gently dipped back into the natural beeswax I 
had extracted from the hive. The final dipping is intended to lightly coat the metal form, slowly warming 
Figure 3. Brittany Sue Mason, Honeycomb Brooch, 
bronze, sterling silver, stainless steel, glass, beeswax.
Figure 4. Work in process, pollen pollution.
56 Junctures 18, December 2017
with the body heat of the wearer to release a sweet, subtle honey scent. The final incorporation of 
scent by the dipping of the forms references the queen honeybee’s use of pheromones.
While slicing the honeycomb cross sections, I encountered a moment of serendipity. Upon overturning 
one of the frames, the ground was littered with a fine golden dust, delightfully rich in colour but 
springily pungent in smell. I began to buzz around like the honeybees, having the urge to collect 
and contain this pollen. I saw this golden powder as a special superfood, vitamins for the bees.6
This led me back to a talk given by Gertje Petersen. Gertje had described her studies into genetically 
breeding better commercial honeybees. She described the urgent issue, concerning honeybees’ 
bee-health and longevity. She described how over the tens of thousands of years we have lived with 
bees, their genetic material has remained relatively unchanged compared to other species over 
time. Gertje hopes to design better-suited honeybees, specifically adapted to certain environmental 
situations or management ideals.
The idea of this super-bee, combined with my 
accidental pollen discovery, prompted my sudden 
addition of the Pollen Pills to this installation. The 
Pollen Pills design was based on vitamin capsules, 
but at a larger scale and using glass rather than 
plastic to magnify the deep golden dust. I decided 
to approach Anne Ryan7 for assistance with 
this vision. The capsules are constructed from 
glass test tubes, cinched at the centre to form 
a connection point. I chose to display the Pollen 
Pills on a small circular sterile metal tray, like you 
might see in the hospital. The metal tray sat upon 
an elegant wooden pedestal in the corner of the 
installation.
It was equally important to display my reference 
material with the finished jewellery. My installation 
evolved into a somewhat site-specific project, as 
it was my intention to display my work against 
a reflective surface. I wanted the viewer to see 
the jewellery in the round — from all angles, as 
the textures and patterns were of main interest 
throughout the process. I chose this location to 
incorporate the light and reflections offered by 
the mirror as backdrop. I had suspended three 
large neckpieces framed by two natural hive 
sections. Hovering closely in front of the mirror, I 
intentionally left just enough space for the viewer 
to sneak a peek around both sides of the work. 
The other three brooches were pinned to a hive 
frame. These were all suspended by fishing line 
Figure 5. Brittany Sue Mason, Pollen Pills, pure pollen, 
handblown glass capsules.
Figure 6. Installation view during Art and Genetics 
Exhibition, HS Skinner Annex, Otago Museum.
57Junctures 18, December 2017
to give the appearance of displays floating, like bees in the air. I also used two brood boxes as a 
plinth for another two brooches. The natural honeycomb remaining on the frames in the brood 
chambers released a beautiful honey smell with the warm heaters of the Skinner Annex. This was 
my first exhibition in which I was obliged to attach an allergy warning notice alongside my artwork!
Brittany Sue Mason immigrated to New Zealand in 2011, and completed her BFA at the Dunedin School of Art 
with a concentration on jewellery design & metalsmithing in, 2013. Her artwork is deeply influenced by the tiny 
textures and patterns of the natural world. 
Brittany worked with geneticist Mackenzie Lovegrove, whose project involves trying to understand how honeybees 
evolved “eusociality”– the social structure where one female reproduces and the others rear her offspring. 
Mackenzie Lovegrove is a PhD student at the department of Biochemistry, University of Otago. Based in the 
Department’s Laboratory for Evolution and Development, she is researching how genetic pathways get co-opted 
into novel functions over evolutionary time.
Figure 7. Allergy warning.
1. Tudor Caradoc-Davies, “Brightwater Bees,” http://www.
brightwaterbees.co.nz/.
2. Karl Weiss and Carlos Vergara, “On the Summit of Social 
Insect Life,” in The Little Book of Bees, trans. Douglas 
Haynes (Munchen: Springer-Verlag, 2002) 119.
3. Mark Winston, The Biology of the Honey Bee (Cambridge: 
Harvard University Press, 1987) 81.
4. Weiss and Vergara, 2002, 107.  
5. Colin Butler, “Queen Substance.” Bee World, Vol. 40 
(1959) 269. Unique to the honeybee hives, when exposed 
to worker honeybees, this pheromone inhibits queen-
rearing and ovary development by any bees except the 
queen honeybee.
6. Winston, 1987, 56-57. “Basically, pollen provides protein, 
lipids, vitamins and minerals ... Bees require pollen for 
growth and development.”
7. Ann works at the Scientific Glassblowing Department, 
Otago University.


Honeycomb Jewels

Zellmer, Johanna

Jeffs, Aaron

22 Junctures 18, December 2017
JOHANNA ZELLMER AND AARON JEFFS
ACCess mATTers — Trio
Figure 1. Johanna Zellmer, Summer Olympics Athens, 2017, San Marino commemorative sterling silver 10 Euro coin: 2004, 
forged, stamped and punched; various Illumina flow cells, cut and fused, 180 x 105 x 2mm. Photograph by the author.
23Junctures 18, December 2017
Using currency as a jewellery medium, I have become fascinated with crafted objects as symbols 
within current socio-economic environments. Symbols in metal, when forged under the hammer, 
become suggestive of shadows and take on qualities of signs in a state of change, able to evoke a 
sense of hybridity. Being a German citizen with permanent residence in New Zealand, I specifically 
explore national iconic symbols. My work comments on both the idea of nationhood and the politics 
that regulate national borders. The emergence of identity politics in contemporary art in the late 
twentieth century and its impact on recent art history provides a relevant context to my work as a 
craft practitioner. Twenty-five years ago, visitors to the highly controversial 1993 Whitney Biennial 
at the Whitney Museum of American Art would encounter Daniel J. Martinez’s work Museum Tags: 
Second Movement (overture) or Overture con claque - Overture with Hired Audience Members as 
the first piece of art upon entering the exhibition. Martinez had broken up the sentence “| I can’t 
| imagine |.ever wanting | to be | white |” into five sections and printed them on the little metal 
museum tags worn to show that admission had been paid, normally stating | WMAA |.  In a panel 
discussion at the Institute for Diversity in the Arts (IDA) at Stanford University Martinez explained:
It’s structurally based on Ferdinand de Saussure’s theory about the organization of language 
and how you can change meaning in language by changing the organization of language. It is an 
organization of an idea that is passive-aggressive. Visitors to the museum became part of the 
work because they had to wear one portion of the phrase. Identity is a construction, right? The 
same way gender is a construction or sexuality is a construction. So here, identity is in motion; it’s 
constantly shifting and moving based on that particular set of words and based on the individual. 
Everyone who visited the museum got to perform in this construction that was changing depending 
on who they were with or what phrase they were wearing. But the phrase does test the limits 
of a civil society. [Many] didn’t like the fact that I was changing the mechanism of the gaze or 
identity and race.1
I believe that objects which respond to the immediate socio-economic environment and its people 
will become increasingly important to contemporary craft discourse. In recent years, collaboration 
has become an integral aspect of my research, allowing craft, philosophy and science to confer. 
There are various reasons why one might consider a collaboration and I have come to realise just 
how much the initial intent impacts on the final outcomes. In one instance, individuals may meet, 
enjoy each other’s company and decide to do something together. Clearly this undertaking is 
extremely open-ended and can result in a struggle to bring to a worthwhile outcome. Alternatively, 
people might choose to participate in a framework specifically calling for collaboration, such as a 
commission work or a call for cross-disciplinary collaboration. Both of these latter scenarios provide 
a clear framework for collaborators, who tend to get involved based on shared interest, rather than 
allure, which in turn allows for a valid exchange and outcome. Then again, a group of people may 
be attracted by shared subject matter and decide to explore mutual themes through individual 
contributions towards a collective outcome. Not unlike the first example, this circumstance is also 
self-governed, but can be highly effective when combining existing research efforts from differing 
practices to present a shared subject matter across disciplines. Above all, I have come to understand 
that collaborating beyond art and craft disciplines provides new ways of seeing one’s own practice 
and propels ideas into new territories.
I first encountered Aaron Jeff’s work in 2015 when he presented his research for a potential Art 
& Light project collaboration. It was through this initial encounter that I started to consider the 
advance of technology in human genome counting and its implications for the inclusion or exclusion 
of migrants in our capitalist societies, nowadays so closely related to the American sci-fi movie 
24 Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 2. Johanna Zellmer, dyed and printed PET lanyards, 2017, illumina flow cells, cut, drilled, 
fused and glued. Photograph by Emily Davidson.
Figure 3. Johanna Zellmer, four hot-forged commemorative sterling silver Euro coins, 2017, 
Photograph by the author.
25Junctures 18, December 2017
Gattaca (1997). My decision to participate in this cross-disciplinary project has set in motion an 
emerging new body of work titled “fused”. The three first pieces from this ongoing work were titled 
ACCess mATTers – Trio, for which a commemorative coin from each of the three Eurozone nation 
states was initially forged square. 
These are then flattened to resemble a credit card or tag stamped with genetic code. The genetic 
code bears an acronym by philosopher Pravu Mazumdar, which run across the whole set of coins. 
Each coin card carries a heat-treated slither of a used genetic slide. Jeff’s knowledge and lab 
materials became instrumental in shaping this new work. In the exhibition catalogue he describes 
his work as follows:
Genetics is the study of heredity, and how the transmission of the genes encoded within our 
DNA from one generation to the next contributes to normal health and development. DNA stores 
biological information; knowing someone’s DNA sequence allows geneticists to identify the 
differences between individuals that make us who we are. Technology exists today that allows us 
to contemplate DNA sequencing entire populations. Sequencing hundreds of thousands of people 
can provide untold good for medicine by revealing what is normal variation, what isn’t normal, 
and what can be done to diagnose and treat disease. However, DNA sequence can also be used 
to trace ancestry and ethnicity, and personally identify an individual; information that can be 
used to exploit and alienate people for political, cultural, or religious reasons. At the University of 
Otago’s Genomics Facility we run DNA sequencing machines that service the research community. 
At the heart of our sequencers is something called a flow cell. The flow cell is a single-use item 
of precision engineering made from glass and plastic: digital images of the flow cell surface are 
converted to human-readable sequence data files, and the flow cell is discarded. It has been a 
privilege to donate our accumulated stash of used flow cells to Johanna, and see them repurposed 
as raw material for her to explore notions about identity and nationhood.2
I paired my metal cards with a fused glass card from cut and re-assembled flow cells, as well as a 
European lanyard in red. Fusing the flattened currency with the glass of genetic flow cells – now filled 
with a pair of eyes from a passport photo – offered an unexpected new alliance for the overarching 
concepts of nation states, access, objects as symbols and identity politics. The eyes are those of 
migrants, whose data will be captured on the small paper certificates that arrive with the coins, 
tucked inside their precious, now emptied satin boxes. Consequently, these sets of encoded objects 
question the role of ‘jewellery’ in future political climates.
Molly Nesbit, the award-winning emerging artist at the 2009 Venice Biennale, with reference to 
issues of sustainability in our times, once wrote: “The arts are entering the space outside themselves, 
looking hard to the future”. In recent years, craft practices have reacted to the so-called social turn3 
and developed strategies to redefine a sense of collectivity and aspects of participation. Capturing 
discourses and manifestations of social encounter have emerged as an essential part of craft 
practices, creating a space to meet the Other and each other. Jewellery objects fulfil this role in 
the everyday, enabling practitioners to place their work at the heart of contemporary discourses 
of participation. With this in mind I would like to return to the 1993 Whitney Biennial, in which 
Byron Kim showed his ongoing work, Synecdoche.4 The work is comprised of a multitude of small 
panel paintings in beige, brown and pink hues, arranged in a grid pattern. While appearing as an 
abstract work of art, every panel represents a portrait of an individual’s skin color. In fact, each 
person’s portrait belongs to his immediate community and in this work is reduced to a small panel, 
represented by their shade of skin colour alone. 
26 Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 4. Johanna Zellmer, Honoré II - Prince de Monaco, 2017, commemorative sterling silver Euro coin, 
forged, rolled and stamped; self-adhesive printed film; Illumina flow cell glass, fused and glued. 
Photograph by the author.
Figure 5. Johanna Zellmer, Ioannes Paulus II - World Day of Peace, 2017, dyed and printed PET lanyard, 
commemorative sterling silver Euro coin, Vatican City, forged, rolled and stamped, self-adhesive printed 
film, illumina flow cell glass, fused and glued. Photograph by Emily Davidson.
27Junctures 18, December 2017
1. The Institute for Diversity in the Arts. 2013. Free 
Your Mind! Improvising Post-Multicultural Art. 
http://www.artpractical.com/feature/free_your_mind_
improvising_post_multicultural_art/ (accessed 6 
October 2017). Abridged excerpt from the panel 
discussion presented by the Institute for Diversity in 
the Arts (IDA) at Stanford University on 6 May, 2013. 
The panel included the artists Kori Newkirk and Daniel 
Joseph Martinez and the curators Elisabeth Sussman 
and Connie Wolf. Jeff Chang, the executive director 
of the IDA, gave the introduction and moderated the 
panel, which frames the notion of post-identity through 
the lens of the speakers’ experiences of the 1993 
Whitney Biennial and its cultural impact. 
2.  Art and Genetics Exhibition Catalogue, 2017, 46 
https://issuu.com/dunedinschoolofart/docs/art_and_
genetics_2017_catalogue (accessed 15 October, 2017).
3. Concepts such as social innovation, social media, 
social capital, social art and social design have 
become pervasive in the past years. Categories such 
as participatory art, relational aesthetics, community-
based art, social design and craft as social practice have 
emerged. Craft artists and designers share strategies in 
order to critically investigate the making of and living with 
things, which means constantly reshaping forms of (post)
human co-existence.
4. Whitney Museum of American Art. 1999-2001. 
Byron Kim. Synecdoche project, 1991-present. http://
collection.whitney.org/object/12073 (accessed 6 
October 2017).
It is in this light that I am reflecting on the recent efforts by craft practices to redefine a sense of 
collectivity and aspects of participation; I am viewing these as being central for valid contributions to 
our socio-economic environment. In conclusion, then, surely what ought to shape our craft processes 
in times to come are physical human encounters, cross-disciplinary collaboration and community; 
allowing us, as Nesbit says, to look hard to the future. 
Johanna Zellmer was born in 1968 and completed a formal apprenticeship as a goldsmith in Germany and a 
Master’s degree at the Australian National University Canberra School of Art. Her research interests are the 
construction of national identities and cross-cultural matters. Her work has been exhibited in Australia, Korea, 
Germany, The Netherlands, Italy and New Zealand and is held in public collections internationally. She calls a small 
farm in Dunedin ‘home’ and works as lecturer and artists-in-residence coordinator at the Dunedin School of Art.
Aaron Jeffs received an MSc in Animal Physiology from the University of Canterbury, and PhD in Cancer Genetics 
from the University of Otago, Christchurch. He moved to the University of Otago to set up the Otago Genomics 
Facility in 2000 before undertaking post-doctoral research with Professor Michael Eccles in the Department of 
Pathology, Dunedin School of Medicine. From 2005, Aaron has worked as a Research Fellow in the Department 
of Pathology, mainly investigating the genetic and genomic basis of cancer and development, before re-joining 
the Otago Genomics & Bioinformatics Facility in 2012.


ACCess mATTers — Trio

Eketone, Heramaahina

Pickery, Jesse-James

Wyeth, Emma

28 Junctures 18, December 2017
HERAMAAHINA EKETONE AND JESSE-JAMES PIcKERY WITH 
EMMA H WYETH
Te purakau tutahi? (The whole story?)
JESSE-JAMES PIcKERY
This work of Heraamahina Eketone is formed in response to two concepts or whakaaro1; the first 
being a response to the reductive process of genetic studies involving Māori participants. The second, 
that the image represents two forms of knowledge in complimentary synthesis. The media were 
chosen to represent the colliding worlds of Western European and Te Ao Māori, and the dominance 
one can have over the other. Here in the work, black ink has been laid upon and fused with flax 
paper to illustrate perception of cultural hegemony. A process, though not overt, which is constantly 
present here in Aotearoa in 2017. 
Heramaahina writes:
Whakaaro 1 – Methodology of enquiry 
The inspiration for this piece came when Dr Emma Wyeth discussed with me the methods 
used in acquiring genetic information. I learnt that often the people who were involved in 
genetic studies can be treated as no more than a string of genetic information. This to me 
is not only a questionable treatment of tapu2, but is a cold reduction from a living, breathing 
human to a lifeless material.
I feel strongly that a study which takes into account the effect of a person’s environment 
would not only give more meaningful results, but would also be a way to reduce the possible 
dehumanising effect of any scientific study centred around human beings.
Being exposed to Dr Wyeth’s research brought a number of questions to my mind: does 
science have room for principles such as tikanga, aahurutanga, kaitiakitanga, and 
manaakitanga? Would the information gained by a more holistic method of study produce a 
result closer to the reality we are faced with? And, is our current method of genetic research 
outdated or undermining itself, in relation to Māori health?
(Heramaahina Eketone) 
__ _
29Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 1. Heramaahina Eketone ,Te pūrākau tūtahi, ink on flax paper, 2017.
30 Junctures 18, December 2017
There are simple, central precepts in Te Ao Māori which can guide the research process in a safer 
and more effective way, they can be seen as ahurutanga – the creation and maintenance of safe 
spaces, manaakitanga – caring for people inside this space, and tikanga – the methods of operation 
in this space. The employment of this system of ethics would not only cater to the people involved 
in the study, but also would create a safe place for the generation of as yet unknown information. 
Tikanga is the primary method of operation underpinning Māori values and ethics, these can be found 
in oral traditions which highlight specific relationships deemed fundamental to the sustainability of 
life. These relationships are embedded and can be refered to as kawa (primary values) and provide 
the foundation for the establishment of tikanga.3 4 
Ethics is about values, and ethical behaviour reflects values held by people at large. For Māori, 
ethics is about ‘tikanga’ for tikanga reflects our values, our beliefs and the way we view the world.5
Tikanga are locally specific practices that enhance and safeguard relationships, and ensure the 
preservation of mana6. As the environment changes or new situations arise, tikanga are enacted 
or adapted to provide context-specific responses. Kawa and tikanga provide the primary interface 
for accessing repositories of cultural knowledge and experience that can be used to inform ethical 
deliberations. Tikanga also provides a framework through which Māori can actively engage with 
ethical issues and consider the effect research may have on their values or relationships.
Saying things like karakia and then respecting that material, not just treating it as a commodity 
- acknowledging where it came from and involving the person and their family. For indigenous 
people, what is important are relationships.7 
Māori intellectuals are calling on tāngata whenua to become more open to supplying human tissue 
to improve their health but tikanga needs to continue evolving to make sure that happens. The 
University of Waikato’s Māori and Indigenous Governance Centre’s research project, Te Mata Ira, is 
focused on producing guidelines for hospitals and laboratories to ensure the correct cultural protocols 
are applied when using Māori tissue and blood samples.8 Research – especially that pertaining to 
the body – needs to be conducted within a framework for considering cultural values in relation to 
other community or indigenous contexts.9
Our tikanga needs to change here with technology and time - and it does and always did evolve. 
Because the human body is considered tapu, the process of taking and storing tissue can be 
complicated and medical staff need to be culturally sensitive. 
Robert Joseph10
Genetic research is an area of prime sensitivity for Māori because of the direct association with 
ones’ whakapapa (lineage). Māori favour the recognition of both individual and collective consents, 
as some ethical issues can be usefully considered and consented to by an individual, other ethical 
issues require community engagement. A collective is likely to be involved in early decisions about 
the appropriateness of the study, while an individual can decide once the study has begun whether 
or not they wish to participate. This means that two forms of consent are required for research 
involving human tissue and/or genetic samples. Firstly, that of an appropriate community/collective 
for the study to take place (via consultation) and, secondly, those of individual Māori participating in 
31Junctures 18, December 2017
the study. Ongoing communication with donors/participants beyond the initial consent process, it 
is also important to provide a communication channel so that donors and their families are able to 
find out what has happened to their tissue and for which research projects it has been included.11 
Understanding the range of Māori approaches to the acquisition of knowledge will enable analysis 
of the entire research purchase and specify any unmet areas of priority.12 
INcIDENTAL FINDINGS (OR NOT SO INcIDENTAL) 
Equity and justice are ethical principles underpinning the importance of benefit-sharing. Research 
will also have a range of outcomes and part of the ethical deliberation is to consider the nature of 
the outcomes (risk versus benefit, short versus long term) and their relative distribution (researchers, 
participants, communities, society). Researchers will legitimately benefit from being involved in 
research but consideration should be given to how participants and their communities might also 
benefit from participation through research, education and translational activities.
Tissue, DNA and data stored within biorepositories often end up as a sample within a research 
project that produces an incidental finding. Incidental findings are results unrelated to the primary 
focus of the study but which may be significant for the individual’s health. The nature of genomic13 
research, which analyses a vast number of genes across the genome, will frequently produce 
incidental findings.14 The challenge is to determine whether the finding is statistically significant, 
clinically significant, and/or clinically actionable. Māori communities expect to be notified of any 
clinically significant or actionable findings. It is the responsibility of the research team to develop an 
ethical plan of how they will address incidental findings that emerge through their study. 
BEST PRAcTIcE: KAITIAKI 
A best practice level of ‘relationship’ allows Māori to take a kaitiaki role within the research 
project with a view to ensuring that tangible outcomes are realised within Māori communities. A 
relationship displaying transparency, good faith, fairness and truthfulness is captured in the concept 
of ‘whakapono’ in the following whakatauki (proverb) 
“kia u ki te whakapono me te aroha tetahi ki tetahi”
(hold fast to the truth with respect for each other).
Whakaaro 2: Importance of experiential knowledge
Knowledge falls into two basic baskets - a priori knowledge and a posteriori 15 . A priori 
knowledge is represented by the ink within the image. This is seen and obtained without 
needing to interact with the world (the flax paper). The second form of knowledge is observed 
knowledge; it includes the knowledge that we know we don’t know. We have not learnt it yet, 
and so is unseen. This is an analogy for the part of the DNA molecule that doesn’t code.16 
We learn through interaction, experience, collaboration and the spaces in which we belong. 
I have based the stylization of the double helix in Māori symbology. The missing pieces of 
the rauru (spiral) or awhiowhio (whirlwind) represent the knowledge yet to be ascertained. 
They are the places for future inquiry.
(Heramaahina Eketone)
32 Junctures 18, December 2017
HIDDEN TREASURES
What was once known as junk DNA turns out to hold hidden treasures, says computational biologist 
Ewan Birney. In 2000, when scientists of the Human Genome Project presented the first rough draft 
of the sequence of bases, or code letters, in human DNA, the initial results appeared to confirm that 
the vast majority of the sequence—perhaps 97 percent of its 3.2 billion bases—had no apparent 
function. Now, in a series of papers published in September in Scientific American, an arm of 
Nature Publishing Group, and elsewhere, the ENCODE group has produced a stunning inventory 
of previously hidden switches, signals and sign posts embedded like runes throughout the entire 
length of human DNA. In the process, the ENCODE project is reinventing the vocabulary with which 
biologists study, discuss and understand human inheritance and disease.17 
Limitations are set by only approaching a theme from one way. In my piece we view the 
double helix seen from above and from no other angles. How much information is missing 
by only looking at things from one perspective in this reductive analysis? We can’t see the 
full image of the spiral because we only have fragments, however it would be untrue to say 
it is a spiral, we can only say we have the base frame of what seems to be a spiral. One of 
the intentions of this piece is to voice the following question: What are we missing?, Can the 
missing parts of the spiral be found if we look from another perspective? 
(Heramaahina Eketone)
Figure 2. Heramaahina Eketone ,Te pūrākau tūtahi, ink on flax paper, 2017.
33Junctures 18, December 2017
Heramaahina’s work – Te pūrākau tūtahi? (The whole story?) is both a homage and a critique made 
in response to our current perspective on genetics. The great leaps in understanding our material 
nature would be impossible without genetics. Early genetic research focused on identifying single 
genes responsible for specific familial disorders (as performed and defined by Gregor Mendel in 
the 1800’s). However, radical technological advancements such as high throughput testing and 
genome-wide scanning techniques have made it possible to examine complex conditions influenced 
by multiple genes and environmental factors to determine population susceptibility. In a research 
context, to ignore the reality of inter-cultural difference is to live with outdated notions of scientific 
investigation. It is also likely to hamper the conduct of research, and limit the capacity of research 
to improve human development.18
Heramaahina Eketone of Ngāti Maniapoto and Waikato descent is currently teaching Kāwai Raupapa 
an introduction to the Māori arts certificate at Te Wananga o Aotearoa. She has done art works for/ 
in collaboration with various community organisations including The University of Otago, The Otago 
Polyfest and Puaka Matariki. From a young age, Heramaahina has had a passion for different Māori 
arts whether it be raranga, whakairo, tā moko and design.
Jesse-James Pickery seeks resonance in sound, light and earth in a cross disciplinary practice. He 
is in his final year of a BVA at Dunedin School of Art majoring in Ceramics.
Emma Wyeth (Ngāi Tahu, Te Ātiawa, Ngāti Tama, Ngāti Mutunga) is a Senior Lecturer in Māori 
Health and Director, Ngāi Tahu Māori Health Research Unit, both in the Department of Preventive 
and Social Medicine at the University of Otago.
34 Junctures 18, December 2017
1. Whakaaro can be translated as; thought; opinion; plan; 
understanding; idea, and/or intention.
2. Tapu is a concept in Te Ao Māori which enables the 
preservation of a thing’s true nature. It is a quality of 
respect and awe which upholds sanctity and delineates 
boundaries.
3. This is not a universal rule, as for those of Te Arawa, 
the kawa is the knowledge base and tikanga is the 
implementation of the kawa. It can be summed as 
Tikanga being the counterpart of Kawa, one is the 
knowledge base, the other is the implementation of the 
protocol and practices. 
4. Hirini Moko Mead (Sidney M. Mead), Tikanga Māori: Living 
by Māori Values, (Huia Publishers, 2003) 11.
5.  Te Ara Tika — Guidelines for Māori research ethics: 
A framework for researchers and ethics committee 
members. The Pūtaiora Writing Group, Dr Maui Hudson, 
Ms Moe Milne, Dr Paul Reynolds, Dr Khyla Russell, Dr 
Barry Smith. Published by the Health Research Council 
of New Zealand on behalf of The Pūtaiora Writing Group, 
2010, http://www.hrc.govt.nz/sites/default/files/
Te%20Ara%20Tika%20Guidelines%20for%20Maori%20
Research%20Ethics.pdf (accessed 10 August 2017) 8.
6. The concept of mana can be seen as justice and equity, 
reflected through power and authority.
7. Ibid.
8. Alexa Cook, “Plea for Māori engagement in tissue 
research,” Te Manu Korihi, Radio New Zealand, http://
www.radionz.co.nz/news/te-manu-korihi/274288/plea-
for-maori-engagement-in-tissue-research (accessed 23 
August 2017).
9. Angela Beaton, Maui Hudson, et al, “Māori in biobanking 
and genomic research: a model for biobanks to guide 
culturally informed governance, operational, and 
community engagement activities,” Genetics in Medicine 
(2017), 19,345–351, http://www.nature.com/gim/
journal/v19/n3/abs/gim2016111a.html (Accessed 17 
August 2017) .
10. Alexa Cook, “Plea for Māori engagement in tissue 
research”.
11.  Te Ara Tika, 2010, 13.
12. Chris Cunningham, “A framework for addressing Māori 
knowledge in research, science and technology,” Pacific 
health dialog: a publication of the Pacific Basin Officers 
Training Program and the Fiji School of Medicine 7(1): 
April 2000, 62-9, https://www.researchgate.net/
publication/11645002_A_framework_for_addressing_
Maori_knowledge_in_research_science_and_technology 
(accessed 29 July 2017).
13. While genetic research looks at the function of specific 
genes, genomic research looks at the functions of groups 
of genes and their interactions with the environment.
14. W Burke, A H Matheny Antommaria, R Bennett, et al. 
“Recommendations for returning genomic incidental 
findings? We need to talk!” Genetics in medicine: official 
journal of the American College of Medical Genetics, 
2013, 15(11):10, http://www.nature.com/gim/journal/
v15/n11/full/gim2013113a.html?foxtrotcallback=true 
(accessed 2 August 2017).
15. A priori knowledge, in Western philosophy since the 
time of Immanuel Kant, knowledge that is independent 
of all particular experiences, as opposed to a posteriori 
knowledge, which derives from experience.
16. “Hidden Treasures in Junk DNA,” Stephen S. Hall, 
Scientific American, a division of Nature America, Inc. 
published Oct 1, 2012, https://www.scientificamerican.
com/article/hidden-treasures-in-junk-dna/ (accessed 2 
August 2017).
17. Ibid.
18.  Te Ara Tika, 2010, 1.


Te purakau tutahi? (The whole story?)

Forsdick, Natalie

Kelly, Madsion

58 Junctures 18, December 2017
NATALIE FORSDIcK AND MADISON KELLY 
Kaki Reared and Sampled
NATALIE FORSDIcK
Kakī are considered to be the world’s rarest wading bird, yet surprisingly, they are also one of the 
most easily accessible of our endangered birds – they can be seen by day in the river deltas at the 
foot of Aoraki Mt Cook free of charge, with no visitor restrictions or fences, unlike the nocturnal 
kiwi, or many of our other birds that can most easily be seen in wildlife sanctuaries or on offshore 
islands. With a small population confined to a single location, prospects may not appear good 
for the kakī. However, this population has not only persisted but it is growing, thanks to intensive 
conservation management by the Department of Conservation. A vast amount of genetic data has 
been generated to inform these management decisions, including data assessing the threat of 
hybridisation with poaka, using the most up-to-date genetic techniques available. I’ve always had a 
passion for conservation, and through postgraduate research, I’ve discovered that genetics is a vital 
tool in the conservation kit, and a way in which I can contribute to conservation. My PhD project is 
focussed on using the most up-to-date DNA sequencing methods to definitively determine the effects 
of this hybridisation on the kakī genome. Moving from the genetics sphere to the genomics sphere 
has been a good challenge, as the amount of data produced is vastly greater, and the analyses 
are much more technical. But knowing that my contribution will make a difference and improve the 
chances of successful kakī recovery is incredibly motivating.
MADISON KELLY
My practice aims to question and investigate contemporary interactions between human and non-
human animals, particularly those involving New Zealand’s native endangered species. 
Kakī, Reared and Sampled responded to the variable ways critically endangered kakī /black stilts 
are represented to, and perceived by, Natalie across three sites of research. In the Canterbury-based 
conservation facility, and Natalie’s Otago-based lab and office spaces, the population shifts between 
whole and sample, physical and digital. Four unfixed charcoal drawings explored these shifts through 
examination of the captive rearing facility, blood samples, DNA samples, and computer coding.  Made 
on a wall in Otago Museum’s HD Skinner Annex, the work (in its two-week life-span) aimed to directly 
activate the space as a fourth site of engagement with broad issues of endangerment, as well as 
specific manifestations of conservation work between geneticist and threatened population.
-
59Junctures 18, December 2017
KAKI, REFLEcTED. 
The following is a conversation reflecting on the collaboration process, as well as the individual and 
shared connections made between Natalie’s research and the work Kakī, Reared and Sampled 
since its making and exhibition through the Art and Genetics project. 
MK: I thought to start with, we could talk about how we worked together at the start of the project, 
that being via a back-and-forth between studio and lab. For me it was a really rewarding experience, 
because although I had been in labs before (in an educational context), it was very different to go 
through a space that was yours specifically, and experience from the perspective of a total outsider.
NF: I can totally understand that. It was really great to have you come through, because you see 
everything a little bit differently from an outsider perspective. You look at our gear and you suddenly 
think “what is that?”
MK: That’s the thing. Initially, I was looking for objects that might be representative of what you were 
experiencing in your work. I started looking at everything in more abstracted ways—what kinds of 
shapes were there, how are they arranged in the different work spaces? There was a push and pull 
between me looking at things in this way whilst responding to you also starting to examine things 
in the same way.
NF: Absolutely. It was really fun having you in the lab. 
MK: With so many shared concerns emerging in our early conversations, the most difficult part was 
figuring out which of those I would focus on. It was a privilege to have actual lab work and the lab 
environment itself guide what I was thinking about, and respond to what you were thinking about. 
NF: I felt like that was a really good jumping-off point. We worked out where we were going after that. 
MK: Especially because up until that point [of visiting your lab] I knew that I was interested in how 
you were interacting with your samples and the population, but had no idea how those relationships 
might actually manifest. 
NF: It really made me think about it more. I have all these opportunities to interact with them 
(kakī) in the field: the actual birds, and then as blood samples or DNA, and then sending it away 
and getting it back as this raw data which I’m dealing with right now—it was cool to think about it 
in those little compartments and have it circle back to being the birds again in the end. Which is 
obviously the most important part. 
MK: So was that something you’d thought about already, just not in an immediate way? 
NF: Probably. I was really thrilled with my research project because I get to handle the birds and be 
involved with release days, which is great because I haven’t had that opportunity before. So those 
interactions had been in the back of my mind, but I hadn’t really followed it in depth or seen how 
it tied together in that way. 
-
60 Junctures 18, December 2017
MK: As an artist, it was exciting to hear you talk about those experiences, and try to resolve them 
in a representational way, because there’s so much about making art that seems really personal. 
I’m often trying to present an internal question or idea, so trying to apply the same processes to 
someone else’s experience or a whole other field of knowledge is an interesting challenge. I already 
held issues of endangerment and conservation close to my heart, but it was from a very different 
place, from someone who is probably closer to an everyday observer that has interest in animals 
and our native ecosystems. Once we focused in on your own experiences with the population and 
the ways that population shifts for you personally, the work came together quite quickly.
In thinking about the various spaces the kakī occupied for you as a researcher (the rearing facility 
in Canterbury, in the lab, in different tubes as blood and DNA samples), I knew I wanted to engage 
with drawing because of the way it [as a process] is tied to mapping and understanding spaces 
in a very direct, physical way. Once I decided to work on the walls, all these ideas of absence or 
impermanence started to take form, which was unexpected but quite analogous to the issues facing 
the kakī population. 
NF: It became so metaphorical, there were so many connections between the birds and the lab 
work and the art. I think that’s been the biggest thing I’ve taken away from it. I’ve loved the whole 
process of being involved in this project, but the most rewarding part was seeing all these reflections 
of different aspects of the work and the population start to appear. 
MK: Reflections is a good word for it. I’ve been thinking about the drawings as analogies for the 
processes and relationships we came across through the collaboration, but thinking about them as 
reflections is nice because the project does seem like a very direct and reflective dialogue. 
NF: Exactly, in the same way that we’re reflecting on it now!
MK: Yes! I was surprised by the amount of parallels between the making of my work and your work 
that kept cropping up. The more I thought about how the drawing process could be similar to your 
processes, the more connections I started to identify in parts of the work that had already naturally 
emerged. The shelving, for example, initially came about from a lot of thinking about how to evoke 
the relationship between the whole population and the samples you eventually work with. Although 
the shelves originally served to present samples of each drawing, they ended up also preserving a 
gradient that reflected how the drawing was made. To me it seemed like a simplified visual code for 
Figures 1 and 2. Charcoal dust residue on shelves from drawing  Kakī Reared and Sampled.
61Junctures 18, December 2017
the drawing itself, but then you also talked about how the dust collections could be representing 
hybridisation processes as well—with the shifting from light, bare areas to the completely covered 
black areas. It was nice to have those trace elements there, because I feel the way you work with 
your population is in the form of all these tiny segments. 
NF: It’s true. Recently I’ve been working on trimming out the poorer-quality bits of DNA sequences, 
which feels a lot like the charcoal dust you generated. 
MK: I wonder if you could talk about hybridisation, and how the work might have shown that to other 
people—because it’s such a specific biological process, and it’s difficult to represent it succinctly 
in just one work. 
NF: Hybridisation has been a challenge for kakī for the past 100 or so years. They interbreed with 
poaka (pied stilts), and it tends to happen when the kakī population is really small in the landscape 
and are having trouble finding mating pairs. I think it came across really well in the art work, especially 
with the use of just black and white (as kakī are pure black, poaka are black-and-white, and hybrids 
are intermediate with varying amounts of black and white). Actually, each picture is basically a hybrid, 
of lab work, data work and the actual birds.
In the last few years hybridisation has been occurring less frequently, but it’s a real issue for 
conservation in that it can hinder species recovery, and even lead to extinction of species through 
waste of genetic resources and genetic mixing. That’s what I’m specifically looking at for my project—
we want to look at this hybridisation with new genomic tools that are now available, which involve 
whole genome sequencing. It’s crazy that we can do that now, look at almost every base pair, and 
absolutely compare the two species all the way across the genome. I never thought I’d do anything 
like this before. As a kid, I envisaged myself as one of those DoC rangers who’s out there in the 
field— I never thought I’d be coding or doing genetics. 
MK: That’s a valid point, because that was one of the earliest things we talked about, that perception 
of what happens in conservation work. You’re now working in this very specific interior environment 
and it’s a different relationship, but equally significant. Similarly, I’ve really enjoyed making work 
about conservation issues or issues of endangerment because it is another way of engaging with 
those topics. 
NF: It’s just another form of science communication at the end of the day. I think it can get out there 
to a lot more people because it’s visual, and gives a kind of opportunity to personally interpret it all. 
I get so excited when I see any kind of communication about threatened species, because it’s just 
encouraging better access for other people to those issues. 
MK: It seems accessibility is a running problem in so many different parts of conservation work—not 
just accessibility of the population themselves (which kakī are an interesting example of because 
they are accessible, but fixed in one place), but also the accessibility of information about those 
species, and availability of that information to the public. There are a lot of barriers that can prevent 
people from engaging with it, so this project has been great in that people have been able to come 
through and see the exhibition, and learn, and ask questions not just about the work but also directly 
questioning what the work is about as well. 
62 Junctures 18, December 2017
NF: It’s really exciting. I really appreciated the opportunity to give a public talk where we could 
engage with people; we had some great questions where people were clearly thinking about what 
we had to say. 
MK: I’d like to return to something you mentioned whilst talking about hybridisation, that threat of 
eventual loss. I think that idea of loss was a big thing that took hold in the project once we discussed 
what would happen if things did go badly, the worst possible outcome. It could be pessimistic, but 
it did drive me to make a work that was impermanent.
NF: It worked really well, because the population is so vulnerable, and it is just like the piece on the 
wall, where it may disappear eventually. The question that arises is how to prevent that happening. 
MK: Those are the kinds of questions that motivated the project’s development; there was a drive 
to use the opportunity to make work that could encourage that train of thought. That potential loss 
of the population informed my medium choice as well, with charcoal being an organic, unfixed, 
almost-dust matter. The fact it was on the wall and could be scrubbed, or even blown away, elicited 
some interesting reactions. Many people were surprised that it wasn’t paper or stuck on in some 
way, and when you say it’s going to be removed at the end—
NF: They were shocked. 
MK: Yes, shocked, exactly! And I felt like saying, “Well, that happens all the time. Things can 
just disappear; entire species go extinct constantly”. When people can attach a preciousness to 
something, the threat of it disappearing is suddenly enough to initiate action. There’s a kind of 
urgency that comes with it. 
Figure 3. Madison Kelly, Kakī Reared and Sampled, 2017, charcoal and shelves on gallery wall, ~100 x 40cm. Installation view.
63Junctures 18, December 2017
NF: That’s really relevant in terms of conservation prioritisation, where there are different values 
attached to different species, and based on those values they either get conserved or don’t, the 
resources are put into them or they’re not. It’s interesting to think about the criteria. It’s more in-
depth than just saying “Kakī are cool, so we’re gonna save them”.
MK: It’s about more than charisma.
NF: Yeah, but that does definitely play into it.
MK: I suppose visibility is a big thing—there are a lot of species that don’t have that visibility, so 
there’s no drive to continue with them or introduce new recovery options. That kind of tension 
between seeing and not seeing was quite present in the making of the work. 
I drew very differently from how I normally would, drawing over and blocking out areas with masking 
tape to create tiny negative spaces that were heavily controlled. It was meticulous, but at the same 
time there was all this smudging and blurring occurring over and around those areas, before the tape 
was peeled off in the final stages. In that sense, I was often thinking in binaries— “this is the fixed 
part/the free part, the visible/the obscured”. Then, while those relationships started operating and 
the project was developing, the scale became smaller and smaller [each drawing eventually being 
27x16 cm]. It felt like a bottleneck situation, where the space I had allocated for each drawing was 
so small, and my hands seemed so big and clumsy, that any mark seemed like it could change the 
whole picture. The consequences of decisions were amplified at that scale. 
NF: It must have been stressful!
MK: That’s the thing, there was an inherent urgency in making the work on installation day, 
despite all the preparation and background knowledge, not knowing how it would turn out. The 
final works were separate, new works compared to the developmental drawings in the studio, 
even though I was working off the same digital images, but I enjoyed that unpredictability. 
NF: Again, it’s really organic.
MK: It was a nice way to think personally about the uncertainty that comes with trying to present 
something or preserve something. Conservation work is all about looking towards some kind of 
future for those animals and ecosystems and still being unsure at the end of the day.
NF: You just don’t know what that future will be, or what effects the work you do now will have on 
that population in 20, 30 years’ time. So yeah, it was really similar. I can’t believe the amount of 
connections that can be made. 
MK: It surprises me! At the same time, it’s often overlooked how many connections you can find 
between art—making processes or research processes, or science and art in general. There’s so 
much that is similar—the handiwork, or for example the way you can think in patterns, which was 
another thing I thought about—how things were visually organised for you. Grids, tables, things that 
were contained. 
NF: Like the boxes of samples in the lab. 
64 Junctures 18, December 2017
MK: Even the birds themselves, in the rearing facility. There are a lot of parallels between how you 
might have to think when drawing on a wall in these contained, masked—off spaces, and working 
with your data that is similarly organised in a contained, quite visually consistent way. 
I thought a nice way to wrap up could be to think about how these issues (conservation, endangerment) 
might continue to be communicated in the future. Are art/science collaborations worth continuing?
NF: Absolutely! Right now I’m thinking, how can I do the next one, how can I get involved in this? 
I don’t have an artistic bone in my body, so being involved in this has been super cool. Like I was 
saying earlier, this kind of project is a really great way to step outside of your science bubble. 
For example, I’m on Twitter a lot, for science. It’s great, because you get to meet all these people 
you wouldn’t normally meet, and talk about research difficulties, or you go to conferences and it’s a 
great way to “get in” and meet people that you might not otherwise have the chance to speak with. 
It’s easier if you already have that interaction online. It broadens your sphere so much, but it’s also 
been described as an echo chamber, where you end up only talking to other scientists or people 
in your field. On one hand, it’s a great tool, but on the other it’s not true science communication 
because it’s not getting beyond that little bubble. I think art can really interact with science in a 
way that takes it out of there. 
MK: I’ve been thinking a lot as someone who had already been making art about these topics, but 
not alongside anyone’s specific scientific practice, this kind of collaborative process is such a rich 
way to engage with these ideas. I’ve learnt so much more about issues I care about that have only 
continued to build and shape my studio practice since I made the works (for example, I have begun 
working more with unfixed/temporary works in my explorations of critically endangered species). 
Communicating with people outside of that echo chamber (because, of course, art can often also 
be insular and inaccessible) and opening each other’s practices only makes it easier to share 
between those zones.
Natalie Forsdick is a conservation geneticist currently working on a PhD project investigating the evolutionary 
history of kakī using high-throughput DNA sequencing techniques. She can be found on Twitter @NatForsdick.
Madison Kelly holds a BVA from the Dunedin School of Art, where she is currently an Honours student. 


Kaki Reared and Sampled

McKinlay, Pamela

Keller, Christine

Horsfield, Julia

81Junctures 18, December 2017
PAM McKINLAY, cHRISTINE KELLER WITH JULIA HORSFIELD
It’s Written in your DNA — Or is it?
Popular belief holds that we have a gene for this and a gene for that, but a single gene is seldom 
responsible for a single trait. Rather, traits are much more complex, with many genes and hundreds 
if not thousands of interactions involved, with many small cumulative changes on genes affecting 
health outcomes. The ultimate aim at the forefront of genetics research is to eradicate disease, lift 
people out of poverty and ease suffering.1  The main areas of investigation include: understanding 
variation in the human genome (code), understanding the biology of the genome (structure and 
function of DNA) and understanding the biology of disease.2  
The biology of the genome and epigenome are relatively new fields. In these, the significance of 
three-dimensional structure on chromosomal regions is considered and the effects these have on 
changing the expression of the protein coding genes. Chemical modification of molecules in the 
epigenome control the compact nature of the DNA strand, but a full reading of the genome remains 
as much a mystery as the Rosetta Stone was for almost a century in the 1800s. The task ahead is to 
unlock the syntax and discover the role genetics and epigenetics3 play in our health and wellbeing.4 5 
THE NEW LANDScAPE OF DNA
Julia Horsfield’s research area is the protein complex known as cohesin.6 Her research group looks 
at the components of DNA strands (“noodles” in the nuclear soup) at a molecular level through the 
lens of biochemical experiments using proximity ligation. The lab captures molecular data to reveal 
information about the chromosome’s contours and topological behaviour at the instant of fixation 
for investigation — noting of course that chromosome are fluid and dynamic, flexing and changing 
as they constantly transition between different states (work/ gene expression/protein manufacture 
and cell division). Research into the cohesin complex reveals that it controls DNA packaging within 
the “noodle soup”7 of the cell nucleus. The way DNA strands fold control which bits of a chromosome 
are active, in communication with each other and neighbouring strands, and which bits are not. 8 
Thus cohesin acts as a regulator to control which loops are working in concert, or otherwise, with 
the RNA gene expression machinery and other chromatin modifiers to determine the spatial and 
temporal organization within the cell. Cohesin is also important at the time of cell or DNA replication.
82 Junctures 18, December 2017
In the first part of proximity ligation, formaldehye fixes the loops in stasis. They are cut up by 
“molecular scissors” and the ends of the segments are joined together by ligase. When the newly 
joined sections are compared against a standard linear chromosome, it is found that the counterpart 
sequences appear far apart; the ligation means that they must have been adjacent or closer to each 
other when folded or contracted in three-dimensional nuclear space. The conceptual model used 
to explain this is that the chromatin strand forms loops held in place by cohesin, which acts like 
a climbing carabiner. It guides how the chromosome folds into a compact space, but still has the 
ability to freely move when needed. The frequency of these loop proximities are proportional to the 
number of times a particular DNA segment appears in the experimental read-out, and show which 
segments of DNA interact the most frequently.9 The frequency of interactions can be visualised 
in a “heat map”, and reveal Topological Associated Domains (TADs), which are zones of high 3D 
connectivity.10 The analysis of the diagram reveals which loops were in communication with each 
other at the time of fixation and which bits were isolated. Active linked regions are shown in hotter 
colours, e.g., red. This was an area of research explored in the Art and Genetics project.
Figure 1. Diagram of proximity ligation from sketchbook — conversation Julia Horsfield and Pam McKinlay.
83Junctures 18, December 2017
WOvEN IN OUR DNA 
Genetics is the study of heritability. We talk about DNA as the thread of life and of traits as being 
woven in our DNA. The project with weavers Keller and McKinlay naturally lent itself to a textile 
expression. We inherit our genes when we are born, and baby blankets are also an item passed 
down the generations as an heirloom. In the finished piece, Christine wove a DNA baby blanket.
The idea was to use a dye process to mimic what happens to individual chromosomes in the cell. The 
technique of ikat weaving is when the threads woven (warp or weft) are tied and dyed before weaving. 
The technique has appeared in various places on the planet, but historically evolved to mastership 
in Indonesia, Japan and parts of Africa. While in Indonesia the ikat motifs are more often figurative, 
the Japanese style is more geometric, nonfigurative and lineal. The colour choice in Japanese ikats 
is minimal and our choice of only one colour aligns more with the Japanese tradition. In our project, 
we did not tie the warp threads before dyeing, as in resist dyeing techniques. Jun and Josiko Tomita 
describe in their book Japanese Ikat Weaving11 a variation called fukiyose ikat, a technique in which 
the material is dip-dyed. This is similar to the process of dyeing for the warps in Heirloom.  
Twentythree individual warps (our 23 pairs of chromosomes) were carefully laid out and measured 
on Christine’s footpath before looping. The intersections of the loops were then marked with red 
dye in the dye bath. The warps were folded onto the loom in pairs, creating 46 sections. The areas 
Figure 2. Heat map from Julia Horsfield’s research.
84 Junctures 18, December 2017
of red marks spaced along the straightened warps now revealed the interactions which had been 
occurring between the sequences amongst the neighbouring loops, as previously packaged in the 
dye bath (our noodle wool soup/cell nucleus). The final woven piece mimicked both the appearance 
of a “heat map” and the ikat form of weaving. 
The colour red is one we found often used when researching the active linked regions of the heat 
maps. As Christine is from Hamburg and red and white are the colours of that city, that gave us 
another reason to choose this colour. Christine writes about her weaving process:
It was a great joy to work with the theoretical framework and set of numbers provided to me by 
the science, and then see what would happen. When folding the warps on the loom, I assigned 
the number "1" to the pair in the middle of the loom and "23" to the two edges. While weaving 
I realized that chromosome number nine was too narrow. I had made a mistake and therefore 
caused a mutation in chromosome nine. Also as threads in the chromosome sixteen broke. I 
needed to do some genetic editing there. I chose to use fresh genetic material – an option I had 
just learnt about on Radio National. The selvedge on the blanket did not work out as smooth as a 
weaver wishes for, and that meant to me that the person related to the blanket might have some 
gender issues – interesting … For presentation of the piece, I needed to find the solution for the 
different length of the warp ends and made them into wild long tassels. I googled that changes 
on chromosome number sixteen could cause thalassemia,12  an inherited blood disease, and for 
me it was clear what they meant – tasslemania. I surely have it!
Figure 3. Composite image of dyeing process. Our cohesin loop-model experiment used red dye to mark the areas of contact 
where the cohesin molecule complex would be. When laid flat, the relationship on the lineal warp to the compacted or folded 
state of the chromosome was revealed. 
85Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 4. Composite image of Christine Keller weaving , work in progress.
Figure 5. Heirloom, installation view, 
rear view showing tassles.
86 Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 6. Heirloom – installation view, front view showing "heat map".
87Junctures 18, December 2017
1. Drew Berry, “Astonishing Molecular Machines,” 
TEDx Talks (2011), https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=DfB8vQokr0Q (accessed 29 July, 2017).
2. Eric Green, “The Genomic Landscape,” National Human 
Genome Research Institute (2014), https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=Lgm5dA1D_pc  (accessed 29 
July, 2018). For example, the search for a vaccine which 
would halt the suffering and mortality caused by the 
malaria parasite or new therapeutic means of fighting 
cancers.
3. Courtney Griffins, “Epigenetics and the Influence of 
Our Genes,” TEDxOU (2012), https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=JTBg6hqeuTg (accessed 29 July 2017). 
Epigenetics is a set of instruction which sit on top of the 
DNA. The instructions are in the form of markers on the 
chromatin which tell the chromosome when and where 
to compact and affects how a cell reads the genes in the 
underlying DNA.
4. Jeffrey Alexander et al, “Nuclear Architecture as an 
Epigenetic Regulator of  Neural Development and 
Function,” Neuroscience, Vol. 264 (2014), 39-50 
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/
S0306452214000657 (accessed 29 July 2017).
5. Courtney Griffins, 2012. New therapeutic approach 
possibilities in for example cancer – if we can use 
epigenetics to reverse the toxic abherent marks that have 
adverse effects eg.tumour suppessor gene in cancer – a 
reversal could keep this gene functioning to protect cells 
ie this way would be to restore cells to normal functioning 
nature – a radical departure from current conventional 
cancer therapy which is to kill cells.
6. Kim Nasmyth, ‘’How is DNA Woven into Chromosomes?’’ 
Israel Institute for Advanced Studies (2016), https://www.
youtube.com/watch?v=uUv86Bu9cF8 (accessed 29 
July 2017). The tri-partite ring of cohesin is an essential 
element in the protein structural biology model. 
7. Kleinschidt “1961” in Nasmyth, “How is DNA Woven 
into Chromosomes?” Israel Institute for Advanced 
Studies (2016) 8:36-9:49, https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=uUv86Bu9cF8 (accessed 29 July 2017). 
8. Laura Elnitski, “Regulatory and Epigenetic Landscapes of 
Mammalian Genomes,” NHGRI Current Topics in Genome 
Analysis (2014), https://www.genome.gov/pages/
research/intramuralresearch/dircalendar/ctga2014/
ctga2014_lec05_color.pdf. (accessed 29 July, 2017). See 
diagrams and also how enhancer genes exploit the three- 
dimensional arrangement between neighbouring strands.
9. Stefanie Kaufmann et al, “Inter-Chromosomal Contact 
Networks Provide Insights into Mammalian Chromatin 
Organization,” PLOS Journal (2015), http://journals.plos.
org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0126125 
(accessed 29 July 2017).
10. Kim Nasmyth, “How Does Cohesin Hold DNAs Together?” 
Israel Institute for Advanced Studies (2016), https://
www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUv86Bu9cF8 (accessed 
29 July 2017). In the ring model cohesin holds sister 
chromatids in position – note this is a topological model, 
not a binding model. Think of cohesion as a freezer bag 
clip or climbing carabiner.
11. Jun and Noriko Tomita, Japanese Ikat Weaving: The 
Techniques of Kasuri, (London, Boston, Melbourne and 
Henley: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1982), 9.
12. “How Do People Get Thalassemia?” Information Centre 
for Sickle Cell and Thalassemic Disorders (1998), http://
sickle.bwh.harvard.edu/thal_inheritance.html (accessed 
30 July 2017).
Pam McKinlay has a Dip HSc (clothing/design and textile science) and a BA in art history from the University of 
Otago. She works predominantly in textiles , photography and sculptural installation.
Christine Keller MFA Concordia University, Montreal (2004), Masters equivalent in product design, 
Gesamthochschule Uni Kassel, Germany (1993). Head of textile section at the Dunedin School of Art (2005 – 
2010). She founded Weaving on Hillingdon (2012) and  Dunedin’s LOOM ROOM (2015), where she now teaches 
weaving again. 
Dr Julia Horsfield is a developmental geneticist based in the Department of Pathology at the University of Otago. 
Julia leads a research group investigating the role of chromosome structure in animal development and cancer. 
Her specific research interest lies in cohesin proteins.
Thanks also to Valerie Parkes of Honey Lane Studios for allowing us to weave on Rosalie Sommerville’s loom.


It’s Written in your DNA — Or is it?

Nunn, Susan

Lamont, Iain

100 Junctures 18, December 2017
SUSAN NUNN AND IAIN LAMONT
Beauty is the Beast
Figure 1. Susan Nunn, Beauty is the Beast, 2017, fabric, polyester batting, cardboard, assorted threads, beads 
and sequins.
101Junctures 18, December 2017
SUSAN NUNN 
I came to the Art and Genetics selection process a little late and did not see the scientists presenting 
their field of genetics first hand.  However, I did hear the presentations online and I was most 
impressed with Iain Lamont. His presentation was filled with humour about the serious subject of 
the Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria, which causes lung infections in cystic fibrosis sufferers.
In his presentation, Iain had extolled the beauty of microbial art and on internet investigation I was 
finding beautiful images that were arousing my creative juices.
As a textile artist, my previous artworks have been on the larger scale, with oversized 3D vegetables 
and fruit representing household food waste going to landfill, as well as a full-sized table, six chairs 
and an assortment of textile fast food and its packaging again representing food and waste.
One of my first ideas was to make a large 3D replica of the bacteria – that is until I met Iain and he 
showed me exactly how unattractive these bacteria really are!
I had several other ideas, but the strongest idea was to put a message in the artwork in some 
way.  So, we brainstormed about how to and what message to give.  Would we concentrate on the 
research, the disease, the bacteria, the sufferer or all of these?
Figure 2. Susan Nunn, Beauty is the Beast, 2017, fabric, polyester batting, cardboard, 
assorted threads, beads and sequins.
102 Junctures 18, December 2017
Iain told me about the Pseudomonas bacteria and how it has been around for 52,000 years, how it 
is part of chromosome 7, how it affects those who have two of the genes that cause cystic fibrosis 
and how those of us who have one gene remain unaffected.  He also took me on a meet-and-greet 
with the bacteria in the lab.
I had seen on the internet an artwork that covered two walls, with circles reminiscent of the Petri 
dishes the bacteria is grown in.  A search through the US Cystic Fibrosis Society site brought the 
idea of using words of encouragement and affirmation in the discs. It triggered the idea for our 
finished work.  A larger disc would have an affirming quote, while random-sized smaller circles had 
single words.
We discussed the words to be used and agreed that we would choose words that have several 
meanings.  We wanted a message that would embrace all aspects of this chain: the bacteria, 
scientists, healthcare professionals, cystic fibrosis sufferers, their families and whanau.
Iain and his lab staff were charged with choosing from a paint chart the colours of the bacteria in 
their Petri dishes as a starting point for me to choose fabrics for the backgrounds before adding 
the words.
The large quote was found on the USCF Society site. It was a slogan used in a previous campaign: 
"Sometimes it’s ok if the only thing you did today was BREATHE".
Figure 3. Susan Nunn, Beauty is the Beast, 2017, fabric, polyester batting, cardboard, 
assorted threads, beads and sequins.
103Junctures 18, December 2017
I contacted the president of the Dunedin CF Society to get his take on this idea.  He was very 
receptive and even asked on the NZCF Facebook page for words to add.  The NZCF Society logo is 
in two shades of blue so this dictated the use of blue, for the words.
I selected background fabrics and chose 28 words that I felt defined the message we wanted to 
send.  Due to time constraints I was unable to use all the words provided.  I cut out the word letters 
in blue fabric, appliqued them to the back-ground and then from the many assorted blue beads 
and sequins selected, I proceeded to hand-stitch each and every one on to the appliqued lettering.
Once beaded the fabric was mounted on to a 6- 7- 8- or 9-inch round cake base. The back was 
neatened with another round of card with sticky Velcro—fluffy side to the disc and hook to be attached 
to the wall when hung.
The larger disc had the saying whipped chain-stitched for all the words except Breathe, which was 
appliqued, beaded and sequined. It was then mounted around an artist’s canvas and attached to 
the wall.
The whole work was placed to go around a corner to give maximum impact under the spotlight to 
the viewer, to lure them closer to study, read and think about the message.
The many assorted blue beads and sequins that twinkled, sparkled and shimmered in the spotlight 
highlighted how beautiful bacteria can be, even if it is harmful to us. 
Figure 4. Susan Nunn, Beauty is the Beast, 2017, fabric, polyester batting, cardboard, assorted threads, beads and sequins.
104 Junctures 18, December 2017
Collaborating with Iain Lamont has been a wonderful experience and an opportunity to learn a great 
deal about a subject I have had very little personal experience with.  I have enjoyed meeting the 
bacteria and hope that Iain will be successful in his ongoing research.
In this artwork, I had hoped to draw a parallel between science and cystic fibrosis sufferers by using 
a series of words they themselves have provided.
The beauty of the bacteria growing in the lab is in stark contrast to the ugliness of how it manifests 
itself in cystic fibrosis sufferers.
The words provide both a positive and a negative element, depending on where in the link a person 
stands.
 
For example, HOPE: 
there is HOPE for a cure, 
there is HOPE for finding the right antibiotic, 
there is HOPE to be able to breathe easily, 
there is HOPE that the suffering eases,
there is HOPE for a future,
and there is HOPE for a greater awareness and understanding     
     for the sufferers of this debilitating disease.
IAIN LAMONT
Cystic fibrosis is the most common inherited disease in New Zealand.  Sufferers have a range of 
symptoms that are managed with medications, regular physiotherapy and hospitalization if required.
 
The lungs develop a thick sticky mucus that can become infected by Pseudomonas aeruginosa 
bacteria. These infections are difficult to cure, affecting the general health of those with the disease.
 
We work with Pseudomonas bacteria, isolated from samples from the lungs of patients, grown on 
a nutrient-containing gel within a Petri dish.  Our aim is to find out why antibiotics given to people 
with Pseudomonas infections do not kill the bacteria and clear the infections, endeavouring to find 
better ways in which to treat the patients.
Pseudomonas has a low antibiotic resistance, but constant exposure to antibiotics has led to an 
‘‘alarming’’ increase in resistant strains difficult or impossible to treat. Research into Pseudomonas 
aeruginosa is part of a growing superbug problem around the world caused by overuse or misuse 
of antibiotics.
105Junctures 18, December 2017
Figure 5. This photo shows seven dishes each containing a different sample of Pseudomonas bacteria. The bacteria can have 
different colours – we don’t know exactly what that means!
Susan Nunn completed her Bachelor of Visual Art (Hons) from the Dunedin School of Art in 2016.   
Iain Lamont is a professor in biochemistry at the University of Otago. After completing an undergraduate degree 
in microbiology (University of Edinburgh, Scotland) and a PhD in bacterial genetics (University of Oxford, England), 
he carried out postdoctoral training in molecular biology at the University of Adelaide (Australia). He then moved 
to the University of Otago, where for over 25 years he has directed a research programme investigating molecular 
aspects of pathogenic Pseudomonas bacteria and in particular how they infect patients with cystic fibrosis. 


Beauty is the Beast

The GENE-ration Game

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