As an association, Bioart Society hopes to renew and reevaluate it's purpose and functions in collaboration with it's members in order to keep reflecting the membership and adjusting to the changing landscape of contemporary art, culture and society at large. Bioart Society's values and purpose, first set during the associations realization in 2008, were revisited during the association's spring meeting in 2023. The following is result of this workshop, honed in collaboration with Bioart Society's the board and staff.
Bioart Society defines bioart as; the expression at the interface (or membrane! as this is bioart) of arts and sciences which combines them holistically. Bioart may use the methods of arts and natural sciences, research knowledge and processes as well as organic matter.
The purpose of the association is
1) To promote bioart
2) Activate awareness and discussion of bioart, biotechnology and bioethics
3) To be active in the international networks of bioartists and researchers
4) Create and develop working conditions for bioartists in Finland
The function of the association spawns (sprouts) from the values of the association, purpose and ethical working methods.
The association can fulfil its purposes by organising meetings, seminars and lectures, showcase art exhibitions, workshops and courses as well as publishing material. To support its functions the association can raise funds by accepting donations, bequests and grants, and organising raffles, sales and events after gaining an appropriate licence.
Values of the association
Openness: We want Bioart Society, and the wider field of art and science, to be inclusive and supportive of a plurality of practices, perspectives and practitioners. We value curiosity and openness to working with processes and concepts that challenge and change how we know the world. We believe that embracing difference and diversity is the route towards a more socially and ecologically just world.
Artistic and scientific responsibility: Bioart Society promotes an ethics of responsibility within artistic and scientific practices that directly and indirectly interact with life forms. Art & science works with and responds to the world and we value responsible ways of doing so.
Respecting and protecting life: As an extension of response-ability, our work entails respecting and protecting living entities and the non-living contexts and materialities that support multispecies livelihoods. Respecting and protecting life requires complexity and takes into account different socio-cultural contexts and rights
Sustainability: While challenging the myth of “sustaining” in a world in constant motion, Bioart Society is committed to growing in ecologically, economically, socially, and materially conscious ways. We advocate for a liveable arts economy that recognises the value of research as much as production and provides the conditions for long-term development and fair working conditions.
Critical Thinking: One of the cornerstones of Bioart Society’s work is critical thinking. In times of poly-crisis and exacerbated systemic oppression, we believe art & science plays a pivotal role in problematizing, raising questions and creating awareness on the political and ethical dimensions of life/living.
Expertise: Bioart Society values expertise and professionalism, asserting that everyone is an expert of their own knowledge and experience. With an emphasis on interdisciplinary research and practice, Bioart Society curates situations and conditions for different forms of expertise and knowledge to meet outside the hierarchies of traditional Western epistemologies. Our role as an association is to foster opportunities for professional artists and researchers and to further the field of arts & science.
Community and collectivity: Working with art & science and matters of life/livability can be heavy work, so creating space for community and conviviality is vital. Cultivating support structures and networks of solidarity to come together to share research, practices, knowledge and experiences in accessible, social and joyful ways is a core value in Bioart Society.