Art, Science and Free Speech

A symposium presented by the Institute for Law and the Humanities and
the Institute for Science, Law and Technology

Governor Richard B. Ogilvie Auditorium
Chicago-Kent College of Law
565 West Adams Street
Chicago, Illinois

Genetic technology has made the chimera of ancient mythology a distinct possibility. Now, Professor Eduardo Kac of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago has made it a reality. With the assistance of renowned French scientists, Kac was the first artist to work with the development of a mammal.

Kac's "GFP Bunny" is a transgenic artwork for which aesthetics means not color or form but what Kac refers to as a complex social event. In the case of "GFP Bunny," the work encompasses a living bunny created with the green fluorescent protein gene of a jellyfish -- so that the full-grown rabbit glows green when exposed to blue light -- as well as the social integration of the bunny into Kac's family home and the public debate generated by the work.

Kac's artistic statement has ramifications far beyond the boundaries of art. He has sparked an international controversy about whether his actions were ethical and whether "GFP Bunny" should be considered art at all. This afternoon symposium will focus on the work of Eduardo Kac, in particular "GFP Bunny."

Eduardo Kac with GFP Bunny

Schedule (click on the link to find out more about the panel participants)

1:30 p.m.	Introduction and Overview Sarah Harding, assistant professor, Chicago-Kent College of Law, and co-director, Institute for Law and the Humanities Lori Andrews, professor, Chicago-Kent College of Law, and director, Institute for Science, Law and Technology
1:40 p.m.	Eduardo Kac
2:25 p.m.	Stuart Newman
2:50 p.m.	Sheldon Nahmod
3:15 p.m.	Christiane Paul
3:40 p.m.	Questions from the Audience
4:00 p.m.	Reception

Symposium Sponsors

Institute for Law and the Humanities

Chicago-Kent's Institute for Law and the Humanities was created to facilitate, support and encourage symposia, lectures, scholarship and faculty discussion on the relationship between law and other humanistic disciplines. It provides opportunities for faculty and students to integrate humanities-based studies with the study of law and to explore the increasingly rich and diverse scholarship in areas such as legal philosophy, legal history, law and literature, law and religion, and law and the arts.

Institute for Science, Law and Technology

New possibilities in technology, such as genetic engineering, nanotechnology and e-commerce, raise difficult ethical questions and challenge traditional legal concepts. The Institute for Science, Law and Technology (ISLAT) a joint enterprise among Chicago-Kent College of Law and other collaborative units of Illinois Institute of Technology, analyzes evolving technologies and their impacts on society. As a center for research at the intersection of science, law and technology, ISLAT also serves as a forum to bring academic and public policy specialists together with the public.

The symposium is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact Greg Kelson at the Institute for Science, Law and Technology at (312) 906-5122 or email gkelson@kentlaw.edu