A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness

MEGHAN MOE BEITIKS

A Lab for Apologies and Forgiveness documents a multifaceted artwork inspired by the bacteria Geobacter sulfurreducens, which reduces radioactive uranium to a non-water-soluble isotope. When I first heard about the bacteria, it opened up an avenue of hope in me. It engages with, and limits, a substance that is otherwise toxic for 10,000 years, and prevents it from doing further harm. Over the works' six different versions, I worked together with microbiologists, Episcopalian parishioners, several artists, a variety of materials, and the bacteria itself.

The Lab accumulated as a series of installations, performances, videos, written works, and feelings. This book is documentation of it in pictures and scripts, reflections on it from folks who witnessed it firsthand, and a raw look into its development and impact from the pages of my Lab book (initially a gift from the Franks Lab for Applied and Environmental Microbiology at LaTrobe University). I draw conclusions from my research, face down personal and scientific failures and reconciliations, open up questions for further experimentation.

Includes contributions from Dr. Ashley Franks, Sarah Knudtson, Laura Caroline de Lara, Tarsh Bates, Dr. Lucie Semenec, Dr. Jennifer Wood, Arjuna Capulong, Lauren Goldstein and Emerson Granillo.

Some things are not remediable. It's okay.