Art meets science in an ambitious new installation from WA’s Nathan Thompson, Guy Ben-Ary and Sebastian Diecke that brings microscopic ‘biobots’ to life inside a custom-built incubator.

From blood, silk and heart muscle the artists bio-engineer individual cellular units, which self-assemble into living, kinetic sculptural forms large enough to see with the naked eye. This thought-provoking exhibition invites us to consider the human body in a world beyond its control.

Bricolage is accompanied by a visual text by acclaimed WA writer Josephine Wilson exploring the concept of ‘bricolage’ and the relationship between art and science. Best known for her 2017 Miles Franklin Award winning novel Extinctions, Wilson also writes poetry, art criticism and for performance. In this new experiment with the written word, her text will occupy the gallery space itself.

Read Josephine Wilson’s text response.

The artists would like to thank Mr. Callum Siegmund; Dr. Ben Allardyce, Deakin University, Geelong, VIC; Dr. Rodney Dilley, Adjunct Professor, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Surgery, UWA; Mr. Hugh Frazer; Dr. Marck Norret, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, UWA; Dr Roger Dong and Soheila Mohammadzadehmoghadam, School of Civil & Mechanical Engineering, Curtin University.

Bricolage is presented in association with Perth Festival and SymbioticA.