Bio-Art
The Bio-Art section explores the intricate relationship between art and living organisms, focusing on the representation and visualization of plants. Through historical analysis, contemporary research, and interdisciplinary collaborations, this project aims to bridge the gap between art and science, highlighting the role of botanical illustrations in disseminating scientific knowledge.
Current Projects Echoes of Botanical Art: Past Meets Future
This ongoing research examines the role of botanical illustration in the production and circulation of scientific knowledge. It takes as its starting point the drawings of the Botanical Expedition to the New Kingdom of Granada led by José Celestino Mutis in the late 18th century, looking at how these images were made — including the contribution of local artists and knowledge holders — and how they shaped what could be known about plants. A second line of work explores how contemporary tools, such as DNA analysis, 3D modelling, artificial intelligence and artificial life, can extend and question these historical images.
- Analyzing historical botanical drawings.
- Assessing contributions to botanical knowledge.
- Developing methodologies integrating traditional and modern techniques.
- Organizing exhibitions to present findings.
Publications Book: Bio-Art
Co-edited by Julio Velasco and Klaus Weber, this publication delves into the historical and contemporary dimensions of Bio-Art, examining how living organisms are used in artistic creations. It compares modern Bio-Art practices with historical and non-European art forms that incorporate living beings, providing a comprehensive overview of this innovative field. This book is available in open access.
Table of Contents:
- Introduction by Julio Velasco and Klaus Weber
- Part One: Humans – Cosmos/Culture – Nature
- Part Two: Animals and Human Animals
- Part Three: Arts – Science – Technology
Publication Date: October 2024
For more information, View the publication.
Article José Celestino Mutis (1732-1808) : les Lumières de la périphérie
Published in French by CTHS, this article explores the intersection of popular and academic knowledge during the Botanical Expedition in the Kingdom of New Granada. It highlights the contributions of local knowledge holders in the scientific process and situates this historical event in the broader scientific context of its time.
Publication Date: August 2024
Article La memoria de las plantas
This article, titled "La memoria de las plantas," published in 2022, examines the Spanish crown's botanical wealth and the challenges of preserving this heritage. It uses the Botanical Expedition led by José Celestino Mutis as a case study to explore the integration of popular and scientific knowledge in botanical research.
Article Art and Ecology: A Necessary Questioning
This article, presented at the "Balance-Unbalance" conference in Rotterdam in 2018, addresses the essential relationship between art and ecology. It questions how artistic practices can challenge and contribute to ecological awareness and actions.
Article Art, Society, and Biodiversity
This article, published online in 2014, explores the intersection of art, society, and biodiversity, discussing the role of artistic practices in addressing ecological and social issues. It delves into the ways art can contribute to a broader understanding and engagement with biodiversity conservation.
Workshop Bio Art before Bio Art
Held in February 2021, this workshop, co-organized by Julio Velasco, University of Paris 1, Panthéon Sorbonne, European University Viadrina, and Centre Marc Bloch, explored the historical and contemporary use of living organisms in art. The workshop included various sessions focusing on topics such as animal representations, botanical art, and the human body as an artistic medium.
Highlights from the Workshop:
- Animals and Ambiguity: Discussing monkey theatre as symbolic performance in pre-Revolutionary Paris by Alan Ross.
- Transformations of Non-Human Actors: From beast to machine in cultural performances by David Krych.
- The Vegetal World as Art: Exploring gardens and their cultural significance by Gabriela-Mariana Luca and Daniela Șilindean.
- The Human Body as Expression: Artificial cranial deformation in the Andes by Jérôme Thomas and building images on the living body in the Pacific by Sébastien Galliot.
- Living in Contemporary Art: Artistic assemblages of wildflowers and non-representationalism in bio art by Regine Rapp and Emeline Gougeon.
The workshop concluded with a discussion on the crisis of sensitivity in bio-art projects.
Exhibition Echoes of Botanical Art
The project is intended to lead to an exhibition bringing together living plants, historical botanical illustrations and contemporary technologies. Drawings from the Mutis Expedition would be shown alongside the plants they depict and alongside new visual and analytical approaches — DNA comparisons, 3D models, AI-generated and artificial-life images — so that visitors can follow how a plant becomes an image, and how images, in turn, shape scientific knowledge.
The exhibition aims to address both the general public and the scientific community, and to be developed in partnership with botanical, cultural and educational institutions.
Artistic Contributions Orme
Created with a major contribution by Julio Velasco, this living sculpture was made in Biscarrosse in 2013 around a multicentennial elm tree, long a focal point of the town's life, which had succumbed to Dutch elm disease like most elms in Europe. The work reconstitutes the living tree and reflects on its historical and ecological significance.
Rather than commemorating a loss, the sculpture extends the life of the elm in another form, making the tree once again a place of gathering and memory for the town. It reflects Velasco's ongoing interest in the relationship between art, living organisms and the social history of places.