Category Archives: Creative Development

AAANZ Impact

I am delighted to be part of a panel for the AAANZ conference on Friday 10 December 2021: Impact of exchange: axis of collaboration between the arts and sciences

This is a wonderful opportunity to share work and approaches with some amazing colleagues including Helen Pynor who is the current ANAT SAHMRI Resident working with Jimmy Breen.

I will provide an overview of my ongoing collaborative engagement with Prof. Dietmar Hutmacher who leads the Centre for Regenerative Medicine at QUT including an update on the ANAT residency project.

Abstract: What is a partnership between an artist and a scientist? What new knowledge do they impart on each other’s discipline, and does it change the way they work and think? This panel will bring to light the kinds of relationships that artists and scientist have, generating new knowledge, ideas and processes resulting in transdisciplinary outcomes that have continuing impacts in both the sciences and art. What can we learn from these relationships and how do we recognise that art/science interdisciplinary and collaborative practice has equal value in both fields? This panel will bring together researchers to discuss how these relationships form, and the kinds of questions artists and scientists bring to the table in order to collaborate. Therefore, we will address the challenges and problems of these experiences, but also how these partnerships redefine the parameters of interdisciplinary engagement and the future of such intersections.

Session Convenor
Dr Erica Seccombe, Australian National University Gregory Minissale, University of Auckland

Session Speakers
Dr Helen Pynor, ANAT resident, SAHMRI Bioinformatics Platform Dr Jimmy Breen, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide
Dr Svenja J. Kratz, University of Tasmania
Dr Baden Pailthorpe, Australian National University
Dr Tony Curran, Independent Artist and Scholar
Gregory Minissale, University of Auckland

Creative Development, Laboratory, Project

Cut Glass Collection

December 8, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

As part of the residency project, I have started a collection of cut glass items. These were sourced from different second hand shops and build on an existing collection of items used for an exhibition at The Edge at the State Library of Queensland in 2013.

I am particularly attracted to the patterns of the glass. A recurring central motif in many items is a star.

Clear cut glass dish – approx 12cm diameter with central star motif and radiating pattern.

This links to my current interest in deep time including the birth of the universe and emergence of complexity. The glass items also look wonderful when lit from rear. As such, I am considering mounting them over a light source. However, this remains to be seen…

In order to grow cells in the dishes, they need to be sterilised so that they do not carry any bacteria or other organisms that could contaminate my cells.

I am feeling more confident in using the benchtop autoclaves independently so am preparing a batch for sterilisation today. As per previous work, they are placed in autoclave bags and sealed with tape. Once the bags are autoclaved, black lines indicate successful sterilisation.

Cut glass dish and wrapped dish ready for sterilisation.

I have also sources some small glass vials which I am considering integrating into some of the future creative works. There are various shapes that I am planning to test.

Selection of glass vials for cell culture trial including metal closures.

Collection of Glass Items in Autoclave Bags Glass vessels in autoclave bags ready for sterilisation.

Finally, I have also prepared some additional 150mm and 90mm Petri dishes. The large dishes will be used as container vessels for the cut glass dishes to keep them sterile during cell culture.

Petri dishes and other glassware ready for autoclaving Petri dishes and other glass items in autoclave bags ready for sterilisation.

I divided the batch into two runs. As per previous process, I used cycle 6 (134 degrees for 10 min). This enables me to process both glassware and metal. It takes about 10 min for the sterilization process (but extra for cooling to handle materials).

Autoclave instructions with cycle details.

Autoclaved dishes Autoclaved bags containing sterilised Petri dishes.

Autoclaved items stored in lab Autoclaved bags stored in lab area, ready for use.

Creative Development, Laboratory

Project Delays

November 28, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

Unfortunately, we have hit another snag in relation to project progress. While we have ethics clearance to proceed with the cell immortalisation process, the ABM cell immortalisation kits we suggested are currently not available in Australia. Jo-Maree found a supplier in Singapore that has the item and associated reagents in stock but the shipping costs are prohibitively expensive at $2235. This is because the items must be shipped on dry ice which requires additional processing and handling. There are also likely to be delays due to COVID.

The shipping expense is not the only issue as UTAS would need to organise the paperwork for import. As such Jo-Maree has suggested that we investigate alternative options with Australian suppliers. We are leaving this for the New Year.

Artworks, Creative Development

Furniture Purchase for New Work

November 23, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

As mentioned previously, I have an upcoming show at The Barracks in New Norfolk in June 2022. This exhibition is the follow up to Mourning Story shown in 2021 and will showcase work arising from the Synapse Residency – although at this stage, I will not be showing any live cells.

I tend to be quite emergent in my approach to practice. However, many ideas tend to build on previous actions or make reference to previous works and concepts. I have a history of repurposing furniture items to create new narratives that link to the domestic or particular historical periods. For the show in June, I am keen to revisit the idea of the Wunderkammer (cabinet of curiosities), but shift it from a sense of containment to a more open form that inspires a sense of wonder at ‘uncontainability’ of life.

One of my key strategies in finding the perfect item, is to trawl through Gumtree and second hand shops. It takes some time and diligence, but I have found the perfect piece.

Cabinet Timber hall stand with mirror

Not only is a beautiful piece of furniture, it is also ideally suited to re-working as a triptych-style work as the central mirror panel can easily be removed.

At almost 2m high, I am very fortunate to have a friend and collaborator with a horse float to get it home!

Creative Development, Laboratory, Project

Hematoxylin and Eosin Staining

October 14, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

Jo-Maree finally had some time to go over basic H&E staining procedures. Since my HBVPs are fixed on the base of glass Petri Dishes, the process is much less involved than working with wax embedded specimens.

H&E is a very common stain combination used in histology. Hematoxylin stains nuclei blue-purple
Eosin stains cytoplasm (protein, muscle fibres etc.) pink H & E Stain Protocol Basic H&E staining protocol from Jo-Maree. We only need to follow the staining process.

Stain: washing Petri Dish on bench in Histology Lab at MSP with Erlenmeyer flask containing distilled water for washing.

Prior to adding the Hematoxylin stain, we washed the Petri dishes with distilled water (DW). Usually, we would simply wash the dishes under running water from the tap. However, since rapid water could dislodge the cells from the base of the dish, we have used a beaker to control the water flow. I washed each dish twice to remove PBS and dislodged cells.

Hematoxylin Stain – deep red stain

Contrary to what the name Hematoxylin suggests, the dye is actually naturally derived and comes from the tree Haematoxylum campechianum (Logwood). As such, it is non-toxic and does not need to be added in a fume cabinet. The dye was added to the Petri Dishes for 5 mins, then washed with distilled water.

The next step involved adding ammoniated water (approx 2 – 3 drops ammonia to 400mL distilled water) to the stained cells for 30 secs. This process is referred to as ‘bluing’ and helps change the red – purple hematoxylin to a blue – purple color.

Hematoxylin Stained Dish Cells visible on the base of Petri Dish following Hematoxylin staining.

After washing the Petri Dish thoroughly after ‘bluing’, we added the Eosin stain. Eosin is a xanthene dye and has an intense fluorescent colour.

Eosin stain in Petri Dish.

The Eosin stain only needs 2 mins to stain the cytoplasm and matrix of cells. Following another thorough wash of the dish, we added 95% ethanol and secured the Petri dish lids with parafilm.

For stained sections on glass slides, it is usual to add Xylene (toxic) and a coverslip. In this case, we could either create large scale glass covers (a bit impractical) or clear resin. I think clear resin is the best solution as it would create a barrier and preserve the dyed cells. I am keen to use the fixed cells in dishes as part of sculptural works. However, I will need to check with lab manager David Steele that I am able to remove these fixed cells from the lab.

Creative Development, Laboratory, Project

The struggle is real…

October 12, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

My fibroid cells are still struggling to gain a foothold. I have yet to reach 80 – 90% confluency. We assumed that they are fibroblasts, but the difficulty of growing them in DMEM suggests that they may need different media.

Despite a slow growth rate, on 7/10/21, I passaged my flask of T25 and T75 (approx 70% confluent) at 1:2 to try and increase our stock of cells.

After four days (11/10/21), the cells in the T25 flasks have not grown much and there seemed to be quite a bit of cell debris (i.e. dead cells). I’ve included a few images to provide a better idea of the growth.

T25 Flask 1 - 11/10/21 T25 – Flask 1 P 3, 11/10/21

T25 Flask 2 - 11/10/21 T25 – Flask 2 P 3, 11/10/21

The lag in growth could be a result of these cells growing from the remaining freeze mix. While the DMSO content was very low following plating , exposure to the toxin could have impacted on cell growth and proliferation over time.

In contrast, the T75 flasks seem and doing better. However, growth rate remains slow.

T75 Flask 1 - 11/10/21 T75 – Flask 1 P 3, 11/10/21

T75 Flask 2 - 11/10/21 T75 – Flask 2 P 3, 11/10/21

While we wait for different media to arrive, I added more FBS (20% total) to see if the increase in serum helps stimulate cell growth.

Some common reasons for poor cell growth include:

Starting culture of cells too low in number. This is a possibility, because we thawed and added the fibroid cells directly into a T75. At QUT, we always started primary cells in a T25 to ensure there were enough to stimulate growth.
Incorrect media. This is also a possibility, but it is difficult to determine the best media when we do not know which cell type we are currently working with. We have ordered some DMEM-F12. While this is still optimised for fibroblasts, it may help…plus we need some for the immortalisation and iPSC protocols anyway.
Mycoplasma contamination. The third option is bad. Mycoplasma contamination would require all cells to be destroyed. Regardless, we will need to check if this is an issue.

We could also try bringing up another vial of cells. However, we only have 2 original vials left, so I am a bit cautious using another flask without further trouble shooting.

Plan B

Fortunately, we considered the potential for the fibroid cells to be unviable and have ethical clearance to get new cells via small biopsy. We will continue to try and optimise fibroid cell growth, but it looks like establishing another batch of cells will be more realistic to move the project forwards.

I will follow up with Brad and his colleagues to get the biopsy underway when lockdown (and end of semester marking) is finalised.

Creative Development, Off Topic

Sponges as scaffolds?

October 1, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

We are lucky in Tasmania to be able to travel freely across the state. With winter coming to an end, I saw an opportunity to visit Burnie with some art school colleagues. We witnessed the arrival of some of the first penguins at the Burnie Little Penguin colony for their annual mating and childrearing.

We also glanced some amazing sponges on the beaches in nearby Wynyard.

Wynyard Beach Fossil Bluff – Wynyard.

Doctor's Rocks Doctor’s Rocks – Wynyard

Marine Sponge texture

Seeing the texture and architecture of different marine sponges on the beach, prompted me to consider whether they have been considered as a scaffold architecture for cell growth.

Different sponges from Wikimedia Commons.

Turns out that yes, there is already a study on whether marine sponges could be used as scaffolds in bone repair.

While this has already been done. I think it would still be a nice side experiment to see whether I can grow my cells in a marine sponge scaffold. There are a number of companies that offer cleaned and bleached natural marine sponges for bathing, facial exfoliation and art – although the variety seems usually limited to honeycomb and silk sponges from the Mediterranean.

Sponges

Bag of sponges available from art supply store.

Perhaps the sponges could be used in conjunction with a hydrogel to assist with cell adhesion and proliferation. I think it would be quite lovely to make a self-portrait of ‘me’ as a sponge. Although, I will likely need to use a bioreactor to enable nutrients to reach the interior of the structure.

Creative Development, Project

Scaffolds Arrived

September 17, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

Dietmar’s scaffolds have arrived.

Scaffolds in Express Post Bag Scaffolds arrived via Express Post on 16/09/21

This means that we can do some tests to see how the HBVPs grow in a matrix. The scaffolds include some flat and tubular sections for initial experimentation.

MPC Scaffolds MPCL Scaffolds – tubular structures at varying heights.

Scaffolds in Petri Dish – flat square structures.

I will need to confirm with Dietmar’s group but the notations seem to indicate that the scaffolds are medical grade polycaprolactone (mPCL) with some tubes including a calcium phosphate (CaP) coating.

MPCL+CaP coating

MPCL+CaP coating – tube structures.

Creative Development, Laboratory, Project

Tumour Baby Cell Growth

September 15, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

I checked in on the tumour baby cells to see how they are growing. This will also help with an estimation of when they need to passaged and I can make up some more frozen stocks.

Overall, they are looking pretty good 🙂 Yay!

Tumour Baby Cells

Brightfield microscope image of Tumour Baby Cells P1 on 14/9/21

They are still a bit sparse, but will likely be ready for passage/freezing this Thursday. That is perfect timing! I will hopefully be able to make up 3 – 4 vials plus one T75 flask. I might plate them out sparsely again as they will need to grow Friday/Sat/Sun without passaging.

Creative Development, Laboratory

HBVPs growing well

September 14, 2021 kratz2021 Leave a comment

The Poly-L-Lysine coating has worked well to encourage growth of HBVPs on the base surface of the glass Petri dishes. They look comparable to the T75 Flask cells.

HBVPs growing in Glass Petri Dish
HBVPs growing on base of glass Petri Dish (no engraving) coated with PLL 13/9/21
HBVPs in T75 Flask HBVPs growing in T75 Flask – 13/9/21

Cells are also growing well in the engraved Petri dishes although it is hard to see the cells on the engraved surface.

Engraved Petri Dish
HBVPs growing on base of glass Petri Dish (with engraving) coated with PLL 13/9/21

To better get a sense of where the cells are growing, we will fix them with 4% Paraformaldehyde (PFA) and then stain them with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). Hematoxylin has blue-purple color and stains cell nuclei. Eosin is pink and stains proteins more generally.