{"id":2343,"date":"2019-01-15T14:11:39","date_gmt":"2019-01-15T22:11:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/artwork\/capsid\/"},"modified":"2021-01-01T22:53:17","modified_gmt":"2021-01-02T06:53:17","slug":"capsid","status":"publish","type":"artwork","link":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/artwork\/capsid\/","title":{"rendered":"CAPSID"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>In 2015, London-based artist John Walter premiered his multimedia project Alien Sex Club, which sought to explore the relationship between visual culture and HIV as well as open a public discussion about this often-taboo topic.&nbsp; But even after Alien Sex Club had its final exhibitions, Walter felt that there was still more to say on the connection between art and the nature of viruses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-video\"><video controls src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=l8IhFWiri5o\"><\/video><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Three years later, Walter, alongside his collaborator at University College London (UCL), Professor Greg Towers, presented his new multimedia project <em><strong>CAPSID<\/strong><\/em>, featuring a short film titled&nbsp;<em>A Virus Walks Into a Bar<\/em>, which&nbsp;pulls the &#8220;bar&#8221; motif of British soap operas to present an analogous tale of how HIV enters human cells and destroys them from within [1].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Walter spent those three years in UCL&#8217;s Towers Lab, studying under Professor Towers to better understand the interactions between a virus and its host, specifically HIV-1 and the effect of AIDS on the human body&#8217;s immune system.&nbsp; His meticulous research is shown in the presentation of the HIV capsid, which is a protein shell surrounding the virus and acting as a &#8220;sphere of invisibilty,&#8221; preventing its DNA from being detected by the immune system [1].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In&nbsp;<em>A Virus Walks Into a Bar<\/em>, the HIV character within his capsid is initially barred from entry into the bar (white blood cell) by the bouncers, figuring him to be a troublemaker, but is allowed in by a few friendly chaps who presume that the new guy just needs a few pints to warm him up.&nbsp; As HIV&#8217;s DNA progresses through the bar, with some pushback by other patrons (cytoplasmids, proteins, etc.), he eventually reaches the &#8220;bartender&#8221; &#8211; the cell&#8217;s nucleus.&nbsp; And then, he singlehandedly takes control of the cell by replacing the &#8220;bartender,&#8221; allowing himself to replicate and take over more &#8220;bars&#8221; [1].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/A-Virus-Walks-Into-a-Bar-785x486-1.jpg\" alt=\"A-Virus-Walks-Into-a-Bar-785x486.jpg?res\">Although the idea of equating a real life visual motif, such as a pub, to a microscopic topic like HIV seems too eccentric to be factually sound, <strong><em>CAPSID<\/em><\/strong> is, at its core, scientifically rooted.&nbsp; During its production, Walter became invested in the scientific basis of Towers&#8217; research, immersing himself in intellectual discourse with undergraduate students and participating in the lab&#8217;s science outreach programs.&nbsp; This was a unique opportunity for Professor Towers&#8217; team to approach their research from different perspectives, and challenged them to introspectively question their own investigations.&nbsp; Professor Towers himself actively engaged in the discussion with Walter about the artistic merit of his research as well.&nbsp; This surprising role-reversal produced spectacular results, as Walter mixed elements of scientific jargon and factual observations to craft other analogous artifacts for his pieces [1].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Although, this is not as surprising as one may first think; much like&nbsp;<em>9 Evenings<\/em> by E.A.T., the artist and the scientist seemed to share an understanding that they each possess elements of Techn\u00e9 and Agnos, and that equal contribution by both parties would form a greater whole result [2].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"width: 400px; height: 267px;\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/4superhe855638a8_c.jpg\" alt=\"4superhe855638a8_c.jpg?w=800\">In one portion of his exhibit, Walter took the likenesses of pop culture characters and corporate logos to act as <a href=\"https:\/\/biologydictionary.net\/cofactor\/\">co-factors<\/a> (the protein particles in cells that allow the capsid access to the nucleii).&nbsp; In another, plush toys and silicon foreskin are framed as the defense mechanism in cells that detect and kill foreign material.&nbsp; Through these paintings and installations, Walter&#8217;s work not only uncovers new ways of expressing how HIV behaves, but presents his findings in a way that the non-scientifically inclined can understand.&nbsp; Additionally, with the collaboration between John Walter and Professor Greg Towers, this exhibition displays an uncommon situation in new media &#8211; the infection of science into the art world, and art into the oft-secluded science community [1].<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The final exhibition of Walter&#8217;s <strong><em>CAPSID<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;was displayed on January 6, 2019, but his official site with more information can be found&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.johnwalter.net\/capsid\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sources:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[1]&nbsp;Regine. \u201cA Virus Walks into a Bar. Or How Art and Science Can Infect Each Other.\u201d We Make Money Not Art, 4 Dec. 2018, <a href=\"http:\/\/we-make-money-not-art.com\/a-virus-walks-into-a-bar-or-how-art-and-science-can-infect-each-other\/\">http:\/\/we-make-money-not-art.com\/a-virus-walks-into-a-bar-or-how-art-and-science-can-infect-each-other\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>[2]&nbsp;Shanken, Edward A. Art and Electronic Media. Phaidon, 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Walter, John. CAPSID | Multi-Media Maximalist Installation by London-Based British Artist John Walter, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.johnwalter.net\/capsid\/\">http:\/\/www.johnwalter.net\/capsid\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/3vitrinb17cd296_b.jpg\" alt=\"3vitrinb17cd296_b.jpg?w=941\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/4onepiece13f6aff_c.jpg\" alt=\"4onepiece13f6aff_c.jpg?w=800\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/4toast539416_h.jpg\" alt=\"4toast539416_h.jpg?resize=1024%2C1537\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/3refl22a06b1a7_c.jpg\" alt=\"3refl22a06b1a7_c.jpg?w=800\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/30.jpg\" alt=\"30.jpg\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/john-walters-capsid-work-art-itsnicethat-02.jpg\" alt=\"john-walters-capsid-work-art-itsnicethat\"\/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"author":48128,"featured_media":2989,"template":"","artist":[1907],"streams":[20,17],"keywords":[5337,2903,5473,5472,2212],"decade":[5545],"media":[5547,5550,5546],"class_list":["post-2343","artwork","type-artwork","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","artist-john-walter","streams-exhibitions-institutions-communities-collaborations","streams-simulations-and-simulacra","keywords-bar","keywords-london","keywords-ucl","keywords-uk","keywords-virus","decade-2010s","media-image","media-installation","media-video"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artwork\/2343","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artwork"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/artwork"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/48128"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artwork\/2343\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3875,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artwork\/2343\/revisions\/3875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2989"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2343"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"artist","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/artist?post=2343"},{"taxonomy":"streams","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/streams?post=2343"},{"taxonomy":"keywords","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/keywords?post=2343"},{"taxonomy":"decade","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/decade?post=2343"},{"taxonomy":"media","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artelectronicmedia.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?post=2343"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}