ARTefacts

What kind of ecology emerges between artificial and biological things that are based on relations and interactions between living, lifelike, and non-living organisms and their environment? The origins of artifacts and biological organisms are typically considered radically different. Previously humans have divided things into artifacts made by humans and into things that are emerging and evolving within natural/biological world. During the recent decade we have witnessed an increase in design approaches that are directed to biological matter (e.g. synthetic biology and life sciences.) We have also observed several decades of development in artificial life and artificial intelligence. -These are some of the central interests that are speculated in the practice-based research by Beloff. The research is based on a hypothesis about our evolving relationship with nature when both humans and the environment are increasingly enhanced. The outcome of Beloff’s research is typically in the form of artefacts that are based on relations rather than perceived as single isolated objects, and which are a merger of technological, data and biological components.