In our daily lives, we rarely become conscious of the fact that most animals and plants that we see around us continue to be genetically modified by our own hands. We have shared our daily lives with farm animals, pets, or house plants for generations. Some of them have been biologically modified to become stronger, while others have changed their colors to appeal aesthetically to humans. The history of genetic modification is long. In the Edo period(1603 – 1868), Japanese people commonly genetically modified plants and flowers such as cherry blossoms, morning glories, chrysanthemums and camellias in pursuit of more beautiful greenery. Silkworms, along with the development of clothing materials, were another subject of genetic modification. For commercial and practical purposes, people have studied and created genetically modified silkworms that could fight illness, grow stronger, and generate more beautiful and higher-quality threads. Scientific technologies have developed further today, and we can now control genes extremely precisely. We have acquired means that allow even bigger impacts on life. While this could bring about great contributions, it also requires us to possess a high sense of ethics.

The installation – Modified Paradise – exhibits animal-themed sculptural works made from “luminescent silk” - created by genetically modified silkworms developed by adding the genes of glowing jelly-fish and corals. The sculptures are in the form of cats and chickens, with whom we have historically lived, and on whom we have made genetic modifications as farm animals and pets. It also exhibits a dress that symbolizes humans themselves.

With Bio-Art, which has been rapidly developing in the world in recent years, and through the artistic filter of Another Farm, the exhibition aims to encourage us to think about interactions between art, science, and technology, and to question what those interactions could mean and evoke in modern society. We hope that this exhibition will be a new springboard for a discussion in our society… are we heading towards Dystopia, or a Modified Paradise?