Bio-Art Between Bios and Zoe

Abstract

In this article, bio-art is analyzed in the framework of critical posthumanism, a specific feature of which is anti-anthropocentrism. Posthumanist theories predetermine the relationship of a modern person with himself, the world around him, and nonhuman agents. In this regard, the scope of the concepts of bios and zoe is being reconsidered, as long as they specify the difference between human and non-human life. Posthumanism is based on the idea of a broader understanding of zoe as the common basis of all life forms, including bios. Bio-art is genetically linked to posthumanism. The latest discoveries in biology have mainstreamed posthumanism issues and inspired the emergence of this art form. But more often than not, bios and zoe act as opposites in bio-art, since bio-art uses life and its various forms as media. Technological innovations allow artists to create new forms of life or to manipulate existing ones. The interrelation of these two terms (bios and zoe) is employed as the key criterion to confirm or refute the assumption that bio-art is associated with the ideas of posthumanism by analyzing some widely known works of bio-art.