Christine Borland

Hela, 2000

video microscope, cells in culture, monitor, text, glass, and wooden shelf; 21 x 64 x 22 in.
Courtesy of Sean Kelly Gallery

I was introduced to the practical implications of the Human Genome Project when I was pregnant and was offered a routine test that could detect the probability of genetic abnormality in the fetus. This resulted in my participating in residency programs at several institutions, each of which dealt with a different aspect of genetics: The Medical Research Councilís Social & Public Health Sciences Unit, Glasgow; the Institute of Medical Genetics, Yorkhill Hospital, Glasgow; and the Wellcome Trust Building in Dundee, Scotland. The following text is an extract from an essay that accompanied the project, written by Dr. Lisa Schwarz, a lecturer in the Philosophy of Medicine at Glasgow University.

ìDetection of genes that cause or carry particular conditions implies labeling the gene as desirable or undesirable, good or bad. Undesirable conditions can now be located by genetic testing. Enormous screening programs and routine prenatal testing for Downís syndrome and spina bifida are set up to detect the probabilities of a community or individual perpetuating the undesirable gene. The condition is thereby red-flagged but with what intention? In the case of conditions that are not yet curable, the only other option is to eliminate them before they affect the community. This means either eliminating the gene or the gene carrier. Ultimately it has become a reason for termination of pregnancy, and more recently the option to prevent coupling between gene carriers where a condition requires two carriers to activate it. How far down the line we will go, as mapping of the genome progresses, is as yet undetermined.î

The artistís participation in this exhibition is made possible by Carl Zeiss Inc. and Sean Kelly Gallery.