Deliberate Maladjustment by Microorganisms: A Medium for Images or Luminous Bacteria

In this article, the authors reveal a new significance for the phrase “deliberately maladjusted” (borrowed from video art of the 1970s and its critical interventions) in the act of microbial image processing using two artworks by the authors: A Medium for Images or Luminous Bacteria and ‘イ’ (1926) by BioLuminescent Bacteria. In contrast to early video experimentations, contemporary computational image processing simulates and manipulates various visual media in a manner well-adjusted for digital computation and display. The authors reconsider the historical process of image processing with living entities and microorganisms as they attempt to extend the possibility of works being deliberately maladjusted.