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Intro to Bacteria as Art

April 14, 2018 @ 2:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Registrations are closed.

Back by popular demand! Art and microbiology come together in this fun, unique hands-on workshop, held in partnership with Cap City Biohackers. Participants will use color-producing microbes to create a ‘living’ work of art. They will learn about 4 pigmented bacteria, Micrococcus luteus (yellow), Rhodococcus rhodochrous (pink), Sarcina aurantiaca(orange-yellow), and Rhodospirillum rubrum (purple) and will have the opportunity to “draw” with them on a petri dish. Attendees will learn to culture non-pathogenic, naturally colorful bacteria, then “paint” these bacteria onto agar plates in their own designs. Traditional scientific techniques for growing bacteria will be demonstrated. As the bacteria multiply, creations literally come to life over time. This course uses the visual arts as a vehicle to introduce STEM concepts such as the bacterial growth cycle, sterile culture technique, and protein synthesis. Participants will experience a new artistic medium while bringing a concreteness to subcellular mechanisms that are often abstractly presented. This workshop is suitable for kids aged 12+ and adults.

This workshop is being held in partnership with the Cultural Arts Center as part of the exhibition “Hypothesis”.

About the Instructors

Dr. Jessica Fleming, co-founder of Cap City Biohackers, is a postdoctoral researcher with the Ohio State University Medical Center, where she earned her doctorate in Molecular Genetics. She is currently focused on identifying prognostic and predictive molecular biomarkers in CNS tumors.

Dr. David Taffany, co-founder of Cap City Biohackers, is a project manager for Fuse Health. He received his doctorate in Molecular Genetics from the Ohio State University.