5 Kas 2011

Bio-sample Wall

Installation

Mapping the bacterial make-up of our Museum Nacht visitors.

Enlarge

Petri dish wall at Mediamatic BANK - RFID tagged petri dishes. Part of the Paddestoelen Paradijs exhibition. Govert de Jong

For Museum Nacht 2011 we collected the bacterial imprints off the fingers of our visitors and linked them to their online profiles. Mapping the petri-dish samples based on which location or museum the visitors came from, we created a visual mapping of how bacteria travels.

Intake Procedure

After filling out the Schimmeltest designed especially for our exhibition by EGBG, our visitors were able to leave their personal fungal imprint on our walls. Each visitor had to place their fingers on the RFID-tagged petri dishes, label them with their name and location of where they came from, and seal them with parafilm. The visitors then linked their petri dish with their Facebook or Mediamatic profile at one of our ikCams.

Mapping

Once the petri dishes were connected to their unique owner digitally, we mapped them onto our wall. The mapping was based on the location of where the visitor just came from, which was usually one of the 45 museums that were part of Museumnacht. This way we could form a fungal mapping of the different museums around us.

Fungal Growth

The one-thousand petri-dish samples will sit in a specially designed heated tent for approximately 3 weeks, creating the ideal condition for the bacteria to grow and multiply. We have been taking pictures of the dishes with our mobile ikCam software, which automatically posts the petri dish image onto the user's profile page. You can find all of the images here.

Visitors can then come and scan the wall of petri dishes with an ikPod RFID reader, showing which online profiles are connected to which bacterial samples.

Enlarge

Visitors label their bio-samples - Each museumnacht visitor had to place his or her finger on the RFID-tagged petri dishes. They included information such as their name, and the location they visited before coming to Mediamatic. Finally, they sealed them with para-film. These petri dishes together made up the Bio-sample Wall. Photo made during Nacht van de Paddestoel, museum night 2011. Anna Meijer

Enlarge

Visitors link their bio-samples to their online profile - Each museumnacht visitor had to place his or her finger in an RFID-tagged petri dish. They included information such as their name, and the location they visited before coming to Mediamatic. The visitors then linked their petri dish to their Facebook or Mediamatic profile using an ikCam. These petri dishes together made up the Bio-sample Wall. Photo made during Nacht van de Paddestoel, museum night 2011. Anna Meijer

Enlarge

Petri dishes with RFID tags - Each museumnacht visitor had to place his or her finger in an RFID-tagged petri dish. They included information such as their name, and the location they visited before coming to Mediamatic. The visitors then linked their petri dish to their Facebook or Mediamatic profile using an ikCam. These petri dishes together made up the Bio-sample Wall. Photo made during Nacht van de Paddestoel, museum night 2011. Anna Meijer

Enlarge

5-11-2011 Bio-sample Wall - Nacht van de Paddestoel - Each museumnacht (2011) visitor had to place his or her finger in an RFID-tagged petri dish. They included information such as their name, and the location they visited before coming to Mediamatic. The visitors then linked their petri dish to their Facebook or Mediamatic profile using an ikCam. These petri dishes together made up the Bio-sample Wall. Photo made during Nacht van de Paddestoel,  Museumnight 2011. Govert de Jong

Enlarge

Bio-sample Wall, 4 days old - Each museumnacht (2011) visitor had to place his or her finger in an RFID-tagged petri dish. They included information such as their name, and the location they visited before coming to Mediamatic. The visitors then linked their petri dish to their Facebook or Mediamatic profile using an ikCam. These petri dishes together made up the Bio-sample Wall. Photo made during Nacht van de Paddestoel, museum night 2011. RFID tagged petri dishes. Part of the Paddestoelen Paradijs exhibition. Anna Meijer