Renske Landeweert

A flower designer in the UK ( @NickDesnoyer ) is using breeding, genetic engineering, and even pathogenic infections to create 1,000 original flowers. His name is Nick Desnoyer, and he does this work in his spare time, after his labmates have left for the day. He does not make profit. Desnoyer’s goal is to control flowers much as a painter controls pigments. His first artwork, entitled “12 little flowers,” pays tribute to Japanese artist Takashi Murakami’s “crying flowers,” which were made to acknowledge the cultural trauma of the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. His flower design process has two steps: genetic sculpting and genetic painting. Sculpting is all about designing the specific shapes and morphology of the flower. Then, painting uses gene sequences to “paint” that sculpted canvas. His lab notebooks are filled with diagrams and genetic circuits. Most of the flowers he has produced in his laboratory appear strikingly similar to the designs in this notebook, suggesting that he is largely able to create the flowers he envisions. Thus, Desnoyer is creating new flowers using "true design," rather than the historical emphasis on breeding & selection. Desnoyer hopes that his project will inspire others to learn about plant engineering. Venture capitalists have reached out to ask whether he plans to sell the flowers, but Desnoyer has said “no” every time. Instead, he plans to start a nonprofit that creates artwork and releases open-source tools for engaging the public. “The ability to engineer life is the single most profound thing we can do,” he says. “The capacity to design flowers is therefore … a motivation that far outweighs money.” Most of Desnoyer’s current work is funded solely by a one-time, $10,000 grant from O’Shaughnessy Ventures. My latest essay for @AsimovPress, out now, explains Desnoyer's design process. This was a blast to write and learn about, and I hope you enjoy it.