'Bioluminescence Installation' by Nicola Burggraf
Academy of Art and Design Offenbach am Main, Germany

Design with the help of nature. This installation asks whether and to what degree biological light can be designed. The starting point of a design approach to biological luminescence is the fact that the lights emitted by certain microorganisms (one-celled dinoflagellates) can be stimulated and influenced.

The installation makes no use of electronics. It is innovative in its use of biologically performing material. In complete darkness the visitor enters a field of filigree stems, at the end of which glass microcosms are affixed. The cells in these microcosms have already long registered the presence of a visitor, as the smallest of movement within this space sets off a bluish shine. This light is the result of the interplay between the human moving through the space and the cells reacting to his presence. Each flash of light is visual feedback on human behaviour within the space.
As the installation is subject to the laws and physiological parameters of its living material, it challenges the traditional relationship between humans and their artefacts.

On the Design of Organic Material.
While design with organic material is still something of a novelty, in future it will gain importance as biotechnology develops. This will pose new challenges for designers, which must be solved in an interdisciplinary fashion. This project aims to utilise the potential of organic mass without directly manipulating its genetic codes.
The manipulation here is rather carried out by influencing the direct environment of organisms, via interaction with their living space. Using special containers, which are also the living space of the cells, the fascinating light effects of algae are framed and influenced. The potential of these microorganisms is not to create bright light, as bioluminescence is highly energy-efficient, but has only limited capacity when compared with artificial light sources. The installation interprets the organisms as self-sufficient biological movement sensors that transmit light signals when they are stimulated by their space being entered. Working with microorganisms requires sensitive design, as parameters essential to their survival must be taken into account. It is important to always bear in mind that the object of our design is alive - and to develop the freedom to design within these parameters.

Click here to watch the video: www.nicolaburggraf.com

Diploma thesis 2009
supervised by Prof. Achim Menges

Scientific support by Dr. Stefan Zauner and Heidemarie Thierfelder, department of biology, Philips-Universität Marburg