Agar-Agar Architecture, 2010-
Alison Loader, Kelly Andres
Agar-Agar Architecture is a living sculpture, an imaginary landscape topographically modeled in 3D, rendered and then cast in agar medium (a solid gelatin made by adding dehydrated seaweed to boiling water). The agar landscape sculptures will serve as a location for growing bacteria collected from different environments. Agar is used in both the kitchen and the institutional lab; in the culinary arts as a thickening agent and for sculpting elaborative jellies; and in scientific laboratories as the primary substance for growing cultures.
The first prototype used found glassware to make the forms (pictured in the documentation) instead of a modeled landscape. This prototype was produced during Fluxmedia's BioreMEDIAtion workshop that was lead by Tagny Duff, Dr. Jennifer Willet, David Khang, Dr. Justin Powlowski and Stelarc in October 2010 at Concordia University, Montreal.