“Sugababe”, Van Gogh’s “living” ear 3D-printed by Diemut Strebe. © DR
This is (almost) Van Gogh’s severed ear. This synthetic ear was conceived using genetic code from a distant descendant of Van Gogh, then 3D-printed for exhibition at ZKM in Karlsruhe. Diemut Strobe, the artist behind the Sugababe project, used Lieuwe Van Gogh’s DNA, of which 1/16th matches Vincent’s, in addition to traces of the painter’s mitochondrial genome from a letter he posted in 1883, in order to grow cells that come close to cloning the famous ear. The response, however, isn’t quite there. The artist added an interactive aspect: you can talk to the severed ear, which interprets vocal sounds as would a “real” ear. That said, the ear doesn’t speak (yet?).