Past Exhibitions: 2001

Paradise Now: Picturing the Genetic Revolution

March 17 - May 27, 2001

Suzanne Anker
Zoosemiotics (Primates),
1993 glass, steel, water, hydrocal, and metallic pigment
Courtesy of Universal Concepts Unlimited

Last fall, at the same time that scientists were finished piecing together the blueprint of the human gene, the noted New York contemporary art center Exit Art mounted an extraordinary exhibition focused on artistic reactions to recent genetic discoveries and the larger ethical and societal implications raised by this new knowledge. As the University of Michigan moves forward with its plans to become a preeminent center of biotechnology, UMMA brings this thought-provoking and timely exhibition to Ann Arbor audiences in a presentation specially tailored to our exhibition spaces.

The genetic and biotech revolutions raise profound questions about reproduction, privacy, race, economics, health, identity--elemental issues that cut to the quick of what it means to be human. Paradise Now co-curators Marvin Heiferman and Carole Kismaric have brought together an intriguing selection of art in a variety of media that puzzles through these daunting new realities of twenty-first century life. The exhibition will offer rich opportunities for public programs exploring the intersections of science, art, and medicine.

This exhibition is made possible in part by Genomic Solutions.

Additional support has been provided by Marshall M. Weinberg, Pfizer, and the following University of Michigan units:  the Office of the President; the Life Sciences, Values, and Society Program; the Arts of Citizenship Program; the Office of the Vice President for Communications; and the Michigan Union, Arts and Programs Office.

Visit the University of Michigan's Life Sciences, Values and Society Program website:
http://www.lifesciences.umich.edu/values

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