by Laura Splan
The first few days of my Science Center BioArt residency have been so wonderfully immersive! Integral Molecular has been a welcoming and engaged host of my research, curiosity and ideas. One of the most unique qualities of this residency is the freedom granted to the artist to develop a project that responds to their time, experiences, and training in a cutting-edge biotech laboratory. It’s such a privilege to be observing and in conversation with so many scientists passionate about their research.
photo: Laura Splan
In the first three days I have shadowed scientists doing everything from stamping plates for shotgunmutagenesis, to B cell harvests, to cell purification. I also attend the weekly lab meetings where Integral Molecular staff present their research results and make announcements that span the gamut of recently granted patents to upcoming lab floor waxing. ;) This week I’ll be learning about software research scientists are using for interactive visualization and analysis of molecular structures and data. I plan to use this software in my residency project and am looking forward to diving into it!
Tissue culture demonstration at Integral Molecular, video by Laura Splan