Antibiotic-Responsive Bioart: Exploring DIYbio as a Design Studio Practice

Our work links hybrid practices from biology, fine arts, and design in a studio setting to support materially-oriented engagement with biotechnology. Using autoethnographic methods, we present our two-year process of converting an HCI studio into a BSL-1 (biosafety level 1) facility, our iterative development of low-cost tools, and our own self-reflexive experimentation with (DIY)bio protocols. Insights from this work led us to design a weeklong bioart course, whereby junior highschool students creatively “painted” with bacteria and antibiotic substances, digitally designed stencils from the resulting petri dish images, and screenprinted them onto physical artifacts. Our findings reveal the nuances of working with biological, analog, and digital materials in a design studio setting. We conclude by reflecting on DIYbio studio as a gathering of diverse actors who work with hybrid materials to give physical form to matters of concern.