(Bio)umetnost in manipuliranje z živim ; (Bio)art and manipulation of the living

The author argues that the modern project of disenchanting the world through genome discovery has not succeeded, but has rather raised numerous anthropological, sociological and philosophical questions related to the role of biotechnology in contemporary society. Biotechnical discourse has been introduced into the art sphere in the late eighties mostly due to V. Flusser, who suggested the artists to start manipulating living material. Today bioart is one of the key fields of contemporary art. It is defined mostly through manipulation of living material, but also through intervening discourse concerning biotechnology and the questions it raises. This corresponds to a characteristic tendency of contemporary art where an art project represents some sort of a platform for manipulation of information. Thus, art is fundamentally socially, anthropologically and philosophically engaged, it becomes an important sphere of discourse. On one hand art is linked to the experimental, which provides for a certain degree of unpredictability - in this manner it is an expression of the characteristic contemporary perception that there is no such thing as an absolute path towards truth and universal knowledge, since one is always bound to various levels of interpretation and understanding. On the other hand the questioning of existing meanings, values and convictions makes art inclined to manipulation of social or political force, which makes it essentially socially engaged, and results in the production of new meanings and points of view. The author establishes how contemporary philosophical comprehension propels the evolution of bioart. From the initial link to computer culture and genetics, after the year 2000, bioart has focused on direct manipulation of living matter. This is a distinctly interdisciplinary field of art as contemporary bioartistic projects demand the collaboration of specialists from other spheres of activity, mostly scientists. The work itself is performed in laboratory conditions and demands specific ...