Life Vessels Life Vessels’ forms part of an ongoing series of works exploring the human desire for immortality and preservation of genetic information through alternative forms of reproduction via biotechnological processes. The work draws on the artist’s experience of working with the 293 cell line – a culture established from the kidney tissue of an aborted fetus that was immortalised using adenovirus DNA. Since its establishment in 1973, the 293 cell line has been used to create new strains including 293T cells that were augmented to express the Simian Virus 40 large T antigen, a protein that facilitates easier insertion of genetic material into mammalian cells. Drawing on cell culture and the use of viral vectors to insert genetic material, the work reflects on the possibility of using biotechnologies to establish new genetic lineages.