“Bacteria Battery” in Ars Electronica

Until the end of the summer 2014, within the framework of “PROJECT GENESIS: Synthetic Biology – Life from the Lab,” the unique project of RIXC – ” Bacteria Battery”, will be exhibited in the Biolab of Ars Electronica Center (AEC) in Linz- Europe’s most grandiose and prestige platform for electronic arts and scientific innovations. AEC Biolab is science and art space which yearly gathers audience of around 60 000 people from all around the world.

“Bacteria Battery” is a networked bio-energy & sound Installation, developed by researchers and artists Rasa and Raitis Smits (RIXC), sound artist and composer Voldemars Johansons and media artist Martins Ratniks. The installation explores the emerging green energy technology called micro-bial fuel cell (MFC), and sonifies the process of generating electricity from the bacteria living in soil and dirty water. The installation consists of several bacteria-fuel cells, which together form a mini bio-power plant. The bacteria-fuel process is interpreted in sound structures, providing an aesthetic perspective on the mutual relations between nature and technology, biologic systems and electronic networks. The installation is a part of “Biotricity” – an ongoing art-science research project by RIXC artists and biologists from Latvian University (since 2012).

As mentioned previously, Ars Electronica is the leading platform for innovations in art and science in Europe, hosting the yearly “Ars electronica” festival, research labs, exhibitions, museum etc. One of most significant initiatives of the center is the international contest “Prix Ars Electronica” -world’s oldest and most renowned competition in media art, premiered in 1987. It is an ” international trend barometer”, aimed to lookout for the most exciting and currently most influential projects, discoveries and tendencies. The announced ” Prix Ars Electronica ‘2014″ is unique with a new category – Golden Nica for Visionary Pioneers of Media Art, opening up an opportunity to focus more intensely on the historical development of media art and it’s contribution to the current social reality.

RIXC The Centre fot New Media Culture has received this prestige prize twice – In 1998 RIXC was awarded by the “Award of Distinction” for the internet-radio project “XCHANGE” (1996) (http://xchange.re-lab.net/), whereas in 2005 RIXC received the ” Golden Nice” for the project ” MILK”, developed in cooperation with Esther Polak (NL) and Ieva Auziņa (2004, http://milkproject.net ).