Drosophila titanus
'Drosophila titanus' was a longterm project which through a process of experimentation and artificial selection aimed to develop a species of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster that would be theoretically capable of living on Saturn's largest moon Titan. While being a virtually impossible project to 'successfully' complete in pure scientific terms, 'Drosophila titanus' sited itself as a process within the ongoing discourse surrounding the complex relationships between art and science. Within this framework, the project addresses notions of biological perfection, the creation of monsters and who and what have the biological and ideological right to travel to space.
Using drosophila and Titan as metaphors for the human and Earth respectively 'Drosophila titanus' employed the methodologies of experimentation, simulation and artificial selection to explore themes of species, biological perfection, perception and future life. Beyond the exploration of biological and evolutionary issues the project engaged with biosemiotics in questioning the nature of reality and organic perception of environmental sensory signals.
