Microbial Drawings

IN IMAGES

Supported by the BMW ART MAKERS program, the artist-curator duo Lara Tabet and Yasmine Chemali present “Vitreous Body” at Les Rencontres d’Arles Festival. Created in port areas, estuaries, and industrialized coastlines, the project reveals the hidden microbiological activity within these waterways.

By Gaia Squarci. Artwork by Lara Tabet and Yasmine Chemali

A medical doctor, Lara Tabet transforms science and technology into creative tools, exposing photography’s chemical nature. By placing color film underwater and allowing bacteria and microorganisms to colonize its gelatin emulsion, she observes how they gradually transform the photosensitive surface through corrosion and erosion. “I create the conditions, then life does the drawing”, she says.

The title “Vitreous Body” refers to the transparent gel that fills the eye and makes the perception of light possible, evoking the act of rendering the unseen visible. The resulting images are abstract compositions printed on stained glass—the same material found in church windows. Just as stained glass traversed by light has long been used to give visual form to the intangible idea of Faith, this work makes the visually elusive reality of environmental pollution—perceptible.