Charlie Murphy, source (life without blood), 2019 Photo/ video : Charlie Murphy
45 x 45 x 40 cm.
Slumped Pasteur pipettes & watch glass with bespoke pulsing LED (by Robin Bussell),
This wheel of life glass sculpture is created using reformed (slumped) Pasteur pipettes – a tool used in millions by biologists across the world to create and sustain cell cultures in the lab.
This work has been created in response to the artist observing her own skin cells being grown and transformed into functioning braincells.
The gently pulsing red light in the wheel’s centre represents the skin biopsy, a tiny sample skin from which millions of cells can be grown in the lab
A ‘wheel’ of pipettes feed from this central source. The wheel , as with muchmachinery used in the lab, turns slowly and methodically – an important aspect of keeping these cells alive – outside of the body.
This artwork has been developed in collaboration with electronics engineer Robin Bussell, with kind support from the Glass Hub .
R&D and production work has been financially supported with Project Grants the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Listen to Charlie talking about this artwork here
