Alba Guestbook (2000)
PLEASE SEND YOUR FREE ALBA KINETIC TO ADDRES :JLN MARS NO 412 KOMP.ANGKASA HALIM PERDANAKUSUMA-JAKTIM-INDONESIA TANK YOU VERY MACHT
Ir.AGUNG SUWITO <AEROCOM75@HOTMAIL.COM>
JAKARTA, INDONESIA - Sunday, December 31, 2000 at 23:47:39 (PST)
While I'm not sure where I stand on E.Kac's use of living creaturesas art, I think that Alba should be with him and his family here in thestates. There is no reason why this PET rabbit should be separated fromthe man who loves her so much. I understand why E.Kac has done what hehas to Alba, and perhaps while investigating the properties of art andlife and godliness he has played God a bit, but he has not created a monsteror a threat to our ecosystem. Alba is simply an albino rabbit who glowsunder specific light. He has not caused her harm, he has not threatenedthe rabbit species. They should be together. Alba will not be given thecomfortable, loving, nurturing home she deserves and was planned for herif she is not allowed to join E.Kac here in the states. Let the glowingrabbit go to her family. Let them love her and take care of her and treather as a beloved pet, for that is the real intent of all of this genetictweaking, to creat a very well known pet. Let Alba go.
Kirsten Williams <kirsten-v-w@animail.net>
Upper Black Eddy, PA USA - Friday, December 29, 2000 at 07:26:33(PST)
The bunny needs to go home to its family. My bunny agrees, even thoughhe does not glow. =)
Mark Siegenfeld <GlowingBunny@techfiend.com>
davis, ca USA - Wednesday, December 27, 2000 at 13:33:35 (PST)
True Scientists deal with the stereotype of the Mad Scientist.Mr. Kacdoes nothing but reinforce this stereotype, making people fear scienceand genetic research. Experiments like this have limited what real scientistcan do in the US.
Biologist
USA - Wednesday, December 27, 2000 at 10:42:51 (PST)
Free Alba !!! It belongs to Mr Kac and his family !
guido sechi <guidsech@tin.it>
roma, italia - Tuesday, December 26, 2000 at 14:58:36 (PST)
Why the heck shouldn't Alba be with Kac? Can anybody come up with onegood reason supporting the separation? No, Alba belongs to him, he's responsiblefor her. She should definitely be given back.
Halcyon <halcyon@n2.com>
Albuquerque, NM USA - Monday, December 25, 2000 at 00:09:20 (PST)
The crime is not that Kac has made a bunny that glows in the dark (beinga former "glow vendor" of glowing necklaces at a theme park, I can onlyimagine the profit potential such an animal would have). Kac's ideas aremore humane than my own aforementioned. The crime here is that a rabbitis being withheld from it's loving owner. Be it glow-in-the-dark or not,many of us know the attachments we feel for our pets. To have ALBA withheldfrom Mr. Kac is the cruelty.
Ken Vian <Ken_Eeyore@yahoo.com>
Lombard, IL USA - Saturday, December 23, 2000 at 17:30:00 (PST)
first, i want to compliment kac on the addition of this forum to thewebsite--it's interesting to see the dialogue that surrounds the issuessurrounding both genetic manipulation as well as those surrounding whatwe now conceive as ethical expression, artistic or otherwise. personally,i admire the project and find it amazingly groundbreaking--not for thesimple fact of the novelty of making a glowing bunny (which, despite itall, my basic, simplest instincts say 'supercool'), but how the introductionof such a creature into an art forum calls to attention a lot of conceptstaken for granted in society. how many people would say having golden retrieversas pets is 'cruel and unusual'? likewise for any type of purebred animal,no matter what the species. most of us wouldn't object to having thesein our homes, despite the fact that they could never survive in the wild.i love my cats and treat them well; they have the comfort and freedom theyneed in and outside my home, but i do watch over them as they would berather inept predators in the city. and i think any animal owner who loveshis or her animals would agree--alba will be right at home in the lovingcare of the kac family.
Celeste Pietrusza <c-pietrusza@northwestern.edu>
Chicago, IL USA - Saturday, December 23, 2000 at 01:54:02 (PST)
How can I get this kind of rabbit at home ?
valery grancher <vgrancher@nomemory.org>
paris, France - Wednesday, December 20, 2000 at 03:45:12 (PST)
i hope , it's my
fatih karacirak <fkaracirak@hotmail.com>
corum, TURKEY - Monday, December 18, 2000 at 12:35:42 (PST)
I find this work to be fascinating and look forward to the progressionof the project.
Wendy Bauer <kohoutek@visto.com>
Henderson, NV USA - Saturday, December 16, 2000 at 13:06:33 (PST)
where is Alba??? She should be with the Kac family. |=<
Jeanie <strvngartist@aol.com>
WA usa - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 20:05:06 (PST)
Breeding experiments can be done in the United States, too. Artificialinsemination could even be used. I hope Alba gets liberated from the laboratory.
Bill Cunningham <cahaba@bellsouth.net>
Cahaba Heights, AL USA - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 18:54:54 (PST)
Fantastic. The whole idea stricks me that way. I see nothing wrongwith what you're doing. Doing what you're is no different then what's alreadybeen done to rabbits. I doubt God would mind your useing the brains hegave you in this manner. And you SHOULD be allowed to bring him home. Youscertainly sounds like a loving family. I once knew of a man in Californiathat owned many many fancy rabbits that all lived in very clean cages inhis barn. The hides were bieutiful. They were bred just for those hides.They were raised to be butchered. They breed different qualities into cattleall the time. What's new? First chance you get.....you take your rabbithome and tell the do-gooders to stick it in thier ear. God doesn't mindwhat you've done.
Don Roark <DFR@WEBTV.NET>
Omaha, NE USA - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 18:47:12 (PST)
Bring her home
John McCallum <mccallum100@hotmail.com>
Boston, Ma USA - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 18:07:13 (PST)
First off, I would like to say that I congratulate you on finding sucha way to bring out conversation about the impressions of normalcy in lifeas we know it. There is so much out there beyond the comprehension of thehuman mind, to have someone so creatively and sucessfully bring out humanconversation and congitive processes in a world that has dulled our sensesand our mind is a breath of fresh air. Second, it is also nice to knowthat someone has the forward thought to find a solution to deal with theramifications for what they have done. Your expectation to give Alba aloving and caring home upon her return to Chicago is as much a breatheof fresh air as anything. Most individuals would do something for the gloryand when the fanfare wears off, then the project they took on is null andvoid to them and left to decay either physically, mentally, or otherwise.Third, in reading the history under the Guestbook, one message stands outto me. The one stating that Alba's breeding could break into the naturalworld and cause destruction to the rabbit population because a GFP-Bunnycan not hide from predators. Ludicrous! Kac writes that it take a speciallight to make her glow, and she does not just glow all the time. Everytimean artist or scientist has made great break throughs in the world (be itart, science or both) there are few people who can see and understand thepresence of mind involved in what they do and see them for the "genius"they are. More often they are over-run by critics calling them screw-upsand sadists or whatever the critic feels fits. Someday everyone will lookback at what Kac has brought into the public eye and what will come outof it in return and see the good he has done. It is the short-sighted peoplewho have the biggest problems with change. I am an artist myself, and cansee the ramifications that this could have on the art world as well asthe scientific world. Come on people, it is not like someone has combineda rabbit and a cheetah. For centuries we have selectively breed and coaxedgenes to be what we want. Faster horses, bigger dogs, oil-feeding bacteria,and countless other opportunities. Each one of those was seen as a positiveoutcome because the goal was short-sighted. Look at the long term of thisproject. People are talking about issues that normaly would be taboo, Sciencehad another opportunity to examine and learn just how DNA works. This couldlead to future genetic alteration to prevent pre-disposition to canceror other illness. It can help us understand how the DNA explains who andwhat we are. Finally, I support Alba's return to Chicago to be with herfamily and under the caring and watchful eye of Kac.
Lucy Roberts <lucyrobertsartandgifts@yahoo.com>
Dallas, TX USA - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 13:44:49 (PST)
That is one funky fresh bunny. I could just picture a whole bunch ofthem at a rave with all the blacklights and a bunch of ecstacied up teenstrippin' on the trails they leave. That my friends... is art.
George <georgetest@yupimail.com>
miami, fl usa - Friday, December 15, 2000 at 11:52:40 (PST)
they should give Kac back his bunny! if they want to expierement thenmake a new one. poor bunny. really give her back to her family you frenchassholes its where she belongs.
Marty C. <smoothdude911@hotmail.com>
USA - Thursday, December 14, 2000 at 20:00:25 (PST)
Cute bunny.
Richard Tibbetts <tibbetts@mit.edu>
Cambridge, MA USA - Monday, December 11, 2000 at 20:39:44 (PST)
Alba is Mr. Kac's rightful property.
Christopher M. Maple <chris_maple@alesis-semi.com>
USA - Monday, December 11, 2000 at 19:12:05 (PST)
Set Alba Free!
Beau Hitt <lycaon@xaoscreations.com>
kirkland, wa USA - Saturday, December 09, 2000 at 14:10:56 (PST)
We love you Alba. This project is one of the most significant art/scienceto address those issues which hugely impact on all of us today.
ann wulff <A.wulff@mailbox.gu.edu.au>
Brisbane, qld AUSTRALIA - Thursday, December 07, 2000 at 01:03:29(PST)
I can not possibly understand how a lack of respect for animals canbe viewed as "art". This is nothing more than another tasteless human wayto show it's superiority over other creatures. You can not tell me thatyou love and respect your fellow creatures when you change the way natureintended them to be. Animals are not your play things. They are to be honoredand respected. "Creating" this thing does not show any respect at all.You are not a god, nor are humans meant to be. It is this sick behaviorthat makes me ashamed to be human. Thanks for showing me (and remindingme) how ugly and repulsive humans can really be.
Ximena Q. <anemix@ihateclowns.com>
davis, CA USA - Tuesday, December 05, 2000 at 15:33:10 (PST)
Eduardo Kac's defense to animal rights activists thus far has beenthat Alba is not "a work of art", but, rather, "a social event" and thereforeshe was not created only as a spectacle. However, if you read through hisplans for the upcoming transgenic dog, Eduardo refers to this many timesas "transgenic art". Animals have a right to live the lives meant for themby nature. To imbue a creature with an unneccessary phenotypic trait, suchas glowing, is simply a new form of cruelty. It expands the idea the humansare more important than animals, and that our desires, such as to see abunny glow, are more important. It is sick. On top of this fact, this GFPgene could in fact get into a native population of rabbits and create anunnatural mutation in the wild. This may sound like nonsense, but it hasalready happened in the case of salmon genetically enginnered to grow extralarge and fat. Somehow salmon containing this gene were able to breed withnative populations in the waters surrounding Scotland, with the resultof many fat and lazy salmon literally dying off in that region. There isnow an ecological crisis concerning salmon. If rabbits in the wild beganto glow, how would they hide from natural predators? There is a reasonmammls do not glow, and everyone should respect this. Eduardo's statementsthat both the GFP bunny and future GFP dog should be free to mate is ludicrousand ecologically dangerous. As a student at the Art Institute of Chicago,I am ashamed that Eduardo teaches at our school. His selfish "works ofart" are irrespinsible to the individual animals as well as to the wellbeing of the biosphere. I hope Alba bites him.
Lauren Kessinger <attndeficit@hotmail.com>
Chicago, OH USA - Monday, December 04, 2000 at 15:17:44 (PST)
I'm so happy to see genetic enginering finally being recognised asthe beautiful artwork it is. I give my welcome to Alba the GFP bunny, andawait GFP dog, and GFP cat... Hopefully such breeding programs will beestablished with kennel, cat, and rabbit clubs so that every one can enjoythem. Thank you!
Tania Grunewald <anshin@hotmail.com>
Mississauga, ON Canada - Monday, December 04, 2000 at 11:11:00 (PST)
As an admirer of the groundbreaking and pioneering work that EduardoKac has been developing for over fifteen years, particularly with telepresenceand biotelematics, and more recently with his transgenic art, I read withgreat interest the postings in the Alba guestbook. I think it is wonderfulto have such a forum, and I think it is great that the postings reflecta wide array of opinions. A recent posting by Pam Barrie seems to suggestthat Kac did not conceive of Alba. Pam snides at the fact the Chicago Tribunereporter did not reach the scientists in time for his story, but failsto notice that the Boston Globe reporter did reach the scientists. TheBoston Globe article says: "The scientist who created her for Kac, Louis-MarieHoudebine, said he doesn't know when, or if, Alba will be allowed to joinKac, but said that she is healthy, and even noted that she has a "particularlymellow and sweet dispostion." (Boston Globe, 9/17/2000). Here we hear itdirectly from the scientist. This is clear and conclusive evidence of Kac'screative gesture. Earlier articles published in France also clearly confirmKac's creative role (for example: Midi Libre, 20 June 2000, p. 8., VaucluseMatin, Provence, 20 June 2000, p. 3; La Provence, 20 June 2000, p. 4.).Anyone familiar with Kac's work knows that he originally proposed in 1998the creation of a transgenic dog, as part of his "GFP K-9" project, a projectthat in my view is directly related to "GFP Bunny". On many occasions Kacstated that since it was not technically possible to create a transgenicdog in 1998, he realized that the creation of another mammal (in this case,a rabbit) would bring similar issues to the foreground (for example: BostonGlobe on 9/17/2000). Pam seems to imply that the fact that scientists atINRA and elsewhere had created transgenic rabbits before somehow altersKac's work. I disagree. The question is not technological primacy, butcultural enframing. Besides, if we look closely at note #17 in Kac's "GFPBunny" essay (http://www.ekac.org/gfpbunny.html), we see that he statesthat the first transgenic rabbits were created in 1985. So, the questionis not when was the first transgenic rabbit created, or how many transgenicrabbits INRA had created before Alba, but what is the cultural impact ofKac's work. In my view, Kac's work is art of the utmost importance, precisleybecause of the complexity and the depth of the philosophical and socialissues he raises.
Walter Silverstone <waltersilverstone@hotmail.com>
San Francisco, CA USA - Sunday, December 03, 2000 at 10:43:52 (PST)
gfp bunny was not in avignon last summer why?
mo mouton <mo.mouton@libertysurf.fr>
vaison la romaine, france - Sunday, December 03, 2000 at 06:25:49(PST)
Alba is a grand experiment in just how far Man can twist Mother Nature'sarm. As a molecular biologist, I have trouble understanding the fuss madeover Alba. She is unique and has rocked the pillars of Heaven with thesheer staggering power of our technology, but so have many other scientificcreations that have arisen in the past few years, clones and stem cellsto name two. Let her come home, let her breed. I'd like a GFP-Bunny myself.:) -Bastion
Bastion Ridley <bastion_r@hotmail.com>
Denver, CO USA - Friday, December 01, 2000 at 23:32:39 (PST)
You are not an artist, you are sadist. stop the cruelty. why don'tyou transform yourself?
emit mahoney <emit@speakeasy.org>
sf, ca USA - Friday, December 01, 2000 at 21:49:05 (PST)
I doubt "Alba" will be coming to Chicago any time soon, because shedoes not appear to me to be the property, physical or intellectual, ofEduardo Kac. Rather, she would seem to be the object of an act of artisticappropriation--hardly a groundbreaking gesture, but carried off with considerableironic finesse. I began to have my suspicions about "GFP Bunny" after readingthe Reuters report of 6/10/2000 ("French Scientists Hopping Mad Over GMRabbit") and Mr. Kac's appended note (see "Transgenic Art Bibliography"on Kacweb). According to a spokeswoman from the Institut National de laRecherche Agronomique (INRA), Mr. Kac learned about their work on a transgenicGFP rabbit "during a conversation with one of the scientists who helpeddevelop her." While Mr. Kac claims in his note that he had already "conceivedof GPF Bunny" before this conversation, he does not comment on the INRA'sapparent disavowal of his artistic guidance in their work. According toyet another source (Biology News, 12/10/2000), INRA scientists had beenimplementing plans for the rabbit long before any contact with Mr. Kac,"as part of their research on tagging embryos with fluorescent markers."A careful perusal of Mr. Kac's own statements will show that he never claimsto have "worked together" with the scientists (as Shona Reed puts it inthe online "Interview with Eduardo Kac, Genolog website), nor does he himselfsay he "planned the project with scientists" (Chicago Tribune 19/9/200.The scientists themselves "could not be reached for comment"). Mr. Kachas only said that GFP Bunny "comprises the creation" of Alba (among otherthings), and that "this was accomplished with the assistance" of the INRAscientists he names in a note (see "GFP Bunny," Kacweb). Whether that "assistance"was intentional or not is a matter for interpretation, and Mr. Kac haslet us all interpret as we wish. Yet it seems to me unlikely that the INRAscientists in question would have "assisted" Mr. Kac in the ordinary senseof the term. Louis-Marie Houdebine has written on such topics as the useof transgenic rabbits to study HIV and familial cardiomyopathy; PatrickPrunet heads a team studying the adaptation of fish to coastal environments.I learned this much about them from the INRA's own website. But despitecopious (Borgesian?) references to scientific literature and to every westernphilosopher from Aristotle to Buber, Mr. Kac has given us no concrete,particular details on his conversations and collaboration with these individuals.What meetings took place with Houdebine and Prunet, and under what auspices?Is a narrative or report by the scientists themselves available? What wasthe funding source? How were these researchers induced to "assist" in anartistic endeavor--and one with a questionable impact on public relations?I cannot find answers to these questions on Mr. Kac's impressive website.If, on the contrary, "Alba" was planned and created by the INRA scientistsfor research purposes, and merely appropriated by Mr. Kac as a case ofscience realizing his own artist imaginings, I think he should correctthose who have misunderstood him and misrepresented his achievement. Ashe himself has put it in the Genolog interview, "the materialization ofan imaginary being produces an unprecedented ambiguity."--PRB
Pam Barrie
USA - Friday, December 01, 2000 at 14:51:02 (PST)
May Alba's creation shed light and thought on the growing debate aboutgenetic engineering, and may she live a long and happy life with her familyin Chicago.
L. Yimm
San Francisco, CA USA - Thursday, November 30, 2000 at 20:16:40(PST)
Where better for Alba to be than with her creator? Send her soon, please.
Lauren Riggin <lriggin@okemah.k12.ok.us>
Okemah, OK USA - Wednesday, November 29, 2000 at 09:57:03 (PST)
This is not a scientific controversy, or at least it shouldn't be.This is a rabbit, a household pet, who should be loved and taken care ofin a home. Yes, she glows under black light, but this can be utilized forshowing people how different and the same everything on earth is.
Andrea
USA - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 16:47:31 (PST)
After reading the background material on Alba and the artist's thoughts.I am absolutely convinced that their is no one person better suited totake care of the animal than Mr. Kac. Tony Barton
Tony Barton <aabarton@aol.com>
Palm Springs, CA USA - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 15:41:52 (PST)
Alba should go home and live a real rabbit's life! Alba belongs inher true home- America
touslemonde
jenesaispas, euh... USA (ok) - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 14:42:02(PST)
You created Alba; Alba should come home!
Birdgirl
Boston, MA USA - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 14:39:42 (PST)
i want to express my support for Alba to come home. This rabbit isthe most funny and nice and futur from rabbit and i want that he becomefree and have one happy and nice long life (with babys?...
esperet <anne-esperet@voila.fr>
nancy, france - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 07:19:10 (PST)
I have apreciated your work so much, that I'm using some of your materialin the Molecular Biology course that I teach at the Science Faculty atthe Mexico's National Autonomous University were I am full Professor
Dr. Victor Valdes-Lopez <vvaldes@servidor.unam.mx>
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - Monday, November 27, 2000 at 18:59:52 (PST)
I applaud the imagination of Mr. Kac and his creations. :) I am alsoan artist, scientist, and a supporter of transgenesis, for it is the future,OUR future! Xenomorphism is a true artform, and an artform that representsthe times we NOW LIVE IN. No longer are we restricted to using paint andbrush to express ourselves, we can do more! Much of my art has been expressedin "living robots" and alien landscapes which are beautiful to behold.A decade ago I experimented with rat GSH in an attempt to produce a dog-sizedrat. I was only able to create a small cat sized rat with gross bone deformaties.As ugly as he was, he had a beauty that one lady in the eastern USA fellin love with, and he found a home with her, in his own special cage, andfed plenty of oreo cookies and doritos (his favorite foods). :) I hadn'tthought much about xenomorphic or transgenic art in a long time, and thanksto Mr. Kac, my interest is once again peaked. He is definately someoneI need to talk to and to meet. :) Luckily he's only 20 minutes away byair. Please allow Alba to come home and to be loved. Cheers! sq
Steve J. Quest <squest@att.net>
Des Moines, IA USA - Saturday, November 25, 2000 at 23:16:15 (PST)
Back again to check out the site.
Buddy walker <bwalker55@aol.com>
Houston, TX USA - Saturday, November 25, 2000 at 17:49:40 (PST)
I think that's right to allow that Alba come back to her family : letAlba go home !
alessandra ciauri <guidsech@tin.it>
roma, italia - Saturday, November 25, 2000 at 12:12:59 (PST)
Please release poor Alba to her true family. It is a crime to leavethis family bunny in a cold lab cell. The discourse will not be stoppedas a result of leaving Alba behind bars. She is a scape-rabbit. Glow onAlba, glow on home!
Gordon Knox <gordon@civitella.org>
NYC, NY USA - Wednesday, November 22, 2000 at 18:57:20 (PST)
Free Alba!!!
Chris <maddog1001_212@yahoo.com>
Mendham, NJ USA - Tuesday, November 21, 2000 at 17:16:41 (PST)
Bring Alba home
shannon spanhake <shannon@pg22.net>
chicago, il USA - Tuesday, November 21, 2000 at 14:55:04 (PST)
Alba needs to come home with the person who knows her the best andprobably appreciates her the most. If there are any ethical problems regardingTG art denying this cute bunny a comfy home is certainly it!
kari
chicago, IL USA - Friday, November 03, 2000 at 17:16:56 (PST)
I haven't quite figured out what I think about transgenic art projects,but in the end, I think I'm ok with it. More importantly now is this poorbunny. Poor Alba! She needs a home. Even if they are nice to her in her lab, someoneloves her and wants her to be with his family. Unless there was some agreementthat she was to be a lab animal at her birth, an idea which disturbs meanyway, I think that she should get to go home with Mr. Kac the same wayshe would have if she were the offspring of a neighbor's pet bunny thathe had laid claimed to in the litter. In any case, she looks like a cuteanimal, and the story of her nuzzling Mr. Kac is very sweet. I agree, Alba+ Kac Household + carrots + pleasant home in Chicago = happy rabbit, andwhy anyone would want to make the rabbit unhappy (she's surely alreadyhad enough stress in her life by now) is beyond my understanding as bothan animal lover and a rational human who still hasn't figured out wherehe stands on her inception/conception as art project.
Scratch her behind the ears for me when you get the chance.
Patrick Cooper <pacooper@email.unc.edu>
Chapel Hill, NC USA - Thursday, November 02, 2000 at 16:18:45 (PST)
Wow...I just caught on to this today!... This is more than I canimagine what is next... I belive this Art created was totally mesmerizedme. I appreciate art. This was fantastic. Though I have a moral side tothe coin what next in life...we do have green ketcup today. Can we imaginethe possiblities for art and science. I cannot judge this only appreciateand hope we can only learn from this. It is a personal journey to eachand every one of us. Good bad or indifferent. Hope for the best.
Xzorbo
USA - Thursday, November 02, 2000 at 10:27:27 (PST)
I mistakenly referred to ALBA as a male rabbit earlier sorry 'boutthat. That's not as important as a comment from a Davor McRay that wasdisgusted with the other comments that "You people could start a war" Idon't like to stereotype folks but that seems to be a comment from oneof the stupid ones. Guess we should all be riding around on square wheels.
Buddy walker <bwalker55@aol.com>
Houston, TX USA - Monday, October 30, 2000 at 17:53:33 (PST)
I believe ALBA should be returned to the man who cares for him. Asfar as the concern that he might father babies so what, if the geneticengineering didn't hurt him it won't hurt the offspring.
Buddy Walker <bwalker55@aol.com>
Houston, TX USA - Monday, October 30, 2000 at 16:34:09 (PST)
let Alba come home to her family!!!
Edward Shanken <giftwrap@duke.edu>
Durham, NC USA - Sunday, October 29, 2000 at 12:45:17 (PST)
Prezado Eduardo Kac, Seu trabalho navega por mares perigosos...no fundoacredito que você é uma espécie de coringa, sofre comsuas decisões mas crê que deve tomá-las. GFP Bunnyé um projeto ao mesmo tempo grotesco e maravilhoso! Nos faz questionarvários aspectos da evolução da genética quefingimos não perceber. Esbarra na ética, fere a moral...aomesmo tempo é premonitório como tantas obras da FC, comopreviu anos atrás H.G.Wells em seu romance "A Ilha do Doutor Moureau".Sinto que não há como brecar o avanço da engenhariagenética e que as hibridizações (uma realidade játrivial nos alimentos transgênicos)serão também umarealidade banal dentro de poucas décadas e assim como o seu coelho-agua-viva,teremos novas quimeras humanas, talvez tornando reais os mitos gregos:Homens/Cavalos(Centauros), Mulheres/peixe (Sereias), etc... Enquanto humanistaque ama a vida e sente a doçura dos pequenos seres, desejo que ALBAretorne ao seu lar e possa ter o amor de uma família...dentre tantasdescobertas e avanços tecnológicos ainda não descobrinada tão fabuloso quanto a ternura. Edgar Franco. Mestrando em Multimeiosda Unicamp.
Edgar Franco <edgarf@iar.unicamp.br>
Campinas, SP Brasil - Thursday, October 26, 2000 at 07:31:38 (PDT)
Alba should return home to Mr. Kac, her rightful guardian, not be keptin a lab for pointless studies.
C. Nagengast <inqroq@yahoo.com>
Los Angeles, CA USA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 22:06:33 (PDT)
It should come back home...
Selim Koyen
Cambridge, MA USA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 21:24:07 (PDT)
Mr.Kac had no right. No animal deserves this. It doesn't matter whereAlba goes, she'll never be happy the way she is. Mr.Kac is crazy! The lifeof a living creature isn't worth art. I don't see any art in what thisworm of Mr.Kac did. It's OK to do medical research on animals, but a jelly-rabbit!Definitly, E.Kac is crazy. I rest my case.
Melanie
Montreal, Quebec CANADA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 16:12:15(PDT)
"What, this bunny? No, it's just a white bunny, I'm bringing her homewith me, as a souveneir from France... Uh-huh, as a pet... Okay, thanks..." Well what do you know? She glows in the dark! How did that happen!
Shawn Longino <shawn@sprungsuspensions.com>
Chicago, Illinois USA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 12:46:17(PDT)
Attention! TO THE PEOPLE WHO MAKE DECISIONS!! PLEASE DO NOT DELAY Alba'sreturn to a stable home, with an family of real people that will provideher with crispy carrots and a plethora of other lovely items to happilychew on, and space to romp around, where she will not be exploited or neglected.......
Elis Sheridan <itssnowingnow@hotmail.com>
Chicago, IL USA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 00:40:52 (PDT)
I am in TOTAL SUPPORT of Alba being genetically altered. I think shehas subsequently received loving care and has raised the awareness of thecommunity as to the possibilities of pursuing unfamiliar and beneficialprojects, such as Eduardo's. I say give him more all the time and resourceshe wants to infiltrate the mindset of students and thinkers: the torchbearersof the future. in the mean time Alba should be able to go home, to livein a supportive and caring environment..........
Monica Dellert <virgo710@excite.com>
Chicago, IL USA - Wednesday, October 25, 2000 at 00:33:00 (PDT)
the artist should keep it it is his. or he should get money for itand the scientists should pay him or the scientists study it then the artistgets it
marc <lazyboy166@hotmail.com>
palos verdes, ca USA - Tuesday, October 24, 2000 at 20:49:27 (PDT)
We have bunnies - they need a loving home. Let Alba go home to theUS to a nice family!!
James Dorband <jdorband@hotmail.com>
Los Angeles, CA USA - Tuesday, October 24, 2000 at 12:51:46 (PDT)
I think it would benefit science and art if people actually had thechance to see the bunny. IT NEEDS TO BE BROUGHT BACK HOME ASAP!!!!!!!!!I want to see the glowing Bunny!
Paul Roustan <rtist54@hotmail.com>
Chicago, IL USA - Tuesday, October 24, 2000 at 11:29:23 (PDT)
As long as nothing's harmed, physically or emotionally, I'm all forthe further diversification of nature. The only issue here is weather humanshave matured enough to recognize a potentially threatening thing (likehuman cloning) from the harmless, silly ones (like glowing rabbits). Itsvery cyberpunk. And sweet. So bring that bunny home. Jeff. ; - )
Jeff Hearn <nebula128@aol.com>
Baltimore, MD USA - Tuesday, October 24, 2000 at 10:49:34 (PDT)
I think that you should get the rabbit even though they think thatis was not right for a man to do this to rabbit. I think that it doesn'tmatter what is wrong with the rabbit. He should get it, he want it to havea loving family and he stated that alba has mixed emotions.
erik <spydex1@aol.com>
los angeles, ca USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 23:13:31 (PDT)
While I am vehemently opposed to the use of rabbits as laboratory animalsused in experiments, the fact that Mr. Kac seems to have done no harm tothe rabbit and that he is more than willing to take Alba into his home,to love her and give her a normal life, I believe that she should be allowedto live with the artist. She is not a lab animal and deserves a life, asdo all bunnies, in a safe loving home where she is loved and cared foras a family member.
Carol Anderson
USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 22:30:41 (PDT)
Nothing to add, but I expect the rabbit will have a much nicer timewith you and your family than in a lab. Lovely looking creature. Good luck.Helen Hopcroft
Helen Hopcroft <helenhopcroft@yahoo.com>
Sydney, Australia - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 20:55:03 (PDT)
I don't remember ever being less proud of being human than today! Imust admit I could not force myself to reading all of them, but all thismoronic, patriotic, sadistic comments are just too much to grasp. In thename of art, I think wars can be started with you people.
Davor McRay <mcdavor@hotmail.com>
Los Angeles, CA USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 20:43:06 (PDT)
WHEN she does come home, I highly recommend having her spayed becausefemale rabbits have a high chance of ovarian cancer, which spaying prevent.You can then very easily train her to use a litter box, just like a cat,and she can live in your home without a cage. You must take care though,to keep wires and cords out of her reach due to chewing. I have a 4 yearold rabbit who has been cage free since she was 6 mo. old. She also travelswith us world-wide. They make wonderful pets. You can see her at: http://hometown.aol.com/janamarie/myhomepage/pet.htmlI really wish you lots of luck in bringing her home. Not too convincedon making her green, though, even for art....and my husband is an artistso I can understand you somewhat. Jana
Jana <janamarie@aol.com>
Los Angeles, ca USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 19:51:06 (PDT)
I think that Alba is pretty cool and that they should let the bunnygo home!
Lucas
usa - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 16:26:13 (PDT)
I hope you are able to get Alba back. I wish you good luck.
Kim Slawson <kim@slawson.org>
Rochester, NY USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 13:31:59 (PDT)
My friend has a company called GreenRabbitDesign Studios and then thisarticle from the Washington Post was emailed to me telling me there reallyis a GREEN RABBIT that exists and now that I know that, this little creature,ALBA, needs to stay alive and be adopted by someone who cares about keepingit alive, loved and cherished for its' very special quality feature ofbeing Green. Living caged and in a laboratory is definitely an animal rightsissue and being a member of PETA I am definitely supporting ALba's freedom.....perhapsPETA could help you with this situation (only a suggestion). Alba deservesit's freedom.....blessings, Debra Eve In Phoenix, AZ
Debra Eve Piatetsky <Debraeve@aol.com>
Phoenix, AZ USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 13:19:05 (PDT)
great idea! of course alba should come home. she is your idea. yourcreation. but watch out the PETA people find out where she is and freeher to glow in the dark - in the outside real world. just curious though- is there anything that could be put into food or the bloodstream or eventatooed to get the same effect? lots of potential here for the club circuit.
jim white <jwxlive@hotmail.com>
los angeles, ca USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 13:02:20 (PDT)
Let Alba go home!
Peter Steinberg <steinberg@spectronic.com>
Rochester, ny USA - Monday, October 23, 2000 at 10:06:41 (PDT)
I am fascinated and impressed by Eduardo Kac's GFP Bunny project. Ihad not heard of Kac until I recently read about the creation and discussionaround Alba. Kac is one of the only artists that I have come across whocreates contexts from which new artforms emerge. After reading his knowledgeabletexts on his site, I see that he has continuously created artwork thatpushes the boundaries of contemporary art, in a radical, yet thoughtfulway. I hope to see more about Kac's artwork in the future. Most importantly,I encourage whoever is deciding the fate of Alba to see that Kac is fosteringrespect and public understanding for transgenic animals. This is a historicalmoment in contemporary culture. Alba should be at home and part of theKac family.
Delilah Kauffman <delilahkauffman@hotmail.com>
NYC, NY USA - Friday, October 20, 2000 at 23:40:55 (PDT)
After reading the heartful "It's Not Easy Being Green" in the WashingtonPost, my heart goes out to you Kac. "Alba" needs the love and bond thatONLY bunny lovers know. "Alba" knows you love her and that you'll takecare of her and make her feel wanted and needed. Rabbits are very sensitiveand very loving. I have had rabbits all my life and I'm 48 years old. Ihave an angora fawn colored bunny named "Rita". "Rita is my life and mybest friend that I can cuddle and stroke when I'm feeling down. There isno justification for "Alma" to have to contiinue to be used for scientificpurposes. Please give "Alma" a loving home. Warmly, Catherine Walsh "tt f n" (ta ta for now).
Catherine Walsh <pwdiesel@cox.rr.com>
HERNDON, VA USA - Friday, October 20, 2000 at 17:41:09 (PDT)
Alba's quality of life will be better in the Kac home than anywhereon earth. There is no good reason to keep her in a lab environment whenshe could be living with a family!
Regina Harders <reginaharders@hotmail.com>
Oak Park, IL USA - Friday, October 20, 2000 at 08:55:24 (PDT)
I might not agree with this form of art, but I do know that a rabbitneeds a proper home. I, myself, am the owner of an adorable Dwarf rabbit.His name is Carrot Cake, and I'm sure that if he could understand whatI've been telling him about Alba, then he would agree. Alba should comehome!
Shannon <Sdk923@aol.com>
Sterling, VA USA - Thursday, October 19, 2000 at 15:19:43 (PDT)
Let Alba come home! Don't be cruel to animals!
David Branson <dabranson@aol.com>
Arlington, VA USA - Thursday, October 19, 2000 at 09:01:51 (PDT)
Alba is wonderful rabbit. It's very interesting. You good work
kerem yilmaz <kerem982@hotmail.com>
ANKARA, A.AYRANCI TURKEY - Thursday, October 19, 2000 at 04:27:32(PDT)
Show the damn bunny some love
Shannon Wampler <baiorin2@yahoo.com>
Charlottesville, VA USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 21:28:40(PDT)
Rabbit is God's creature. Man should not tamper with rabbit as Godcreated.
Francisco Olmos
Espana - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 20:19:22 (PDT)
Dude, the other day, I was thinking, you know, what we really needmore of in the world are rabbits. Not just any rabbits. Green rabbits.That glow. Quantum transports would be cool, too, where you could stepin and push a button and *blamo!* you're chillin' in Tahiti, but that'sbesides the point, and it comes in a distant second to green rabbits anyway.Right. So you can imagine my surprise when I'm checking out the paper today(and this is like, the Washington Post, not the Enquirer or something)and there's this picture a real live green rabbit! I was like, "whoa!!!".I was so totally blown away that, after looking at the picture for a while,I read the article! It was a real tear jerker. Poor Alba. Locked up inFrance, of all places. I know if I were a green rabbit, France is the lastplace I'd want to be. And they're keeping her there for "experimentationwith mating". As if mating is what rabbits like to do, and not playingand frolicking with grown men. It's a real bummer, if you ask me. Somethingas special as Alba deserves to be shared with the whole world. I mean,in the article, it was, like, saying that on a genetic level, us peoplearen't all that different from mustard, let alone rabbits. So maybe Albacould be a force for global unity, or something. Maybe if those peoplein the middle east could see this green rabbit, they would realize thatthey weren't all that different after all, and put down their rocks andguns and join in song, or something like that. Maybe, like, people couldstart a free Alba campaign, or something, like they did with that whale.They could make a movie too. Then more people would understand how luckythey are to live in a time when miracles like this are possible. And prettysoon, there'll be people and mustard and rabbits all living together, in,like, harmony, and stuff. Also, if there were lots of green rabbits, whenthey died you could make a really cool coat. Dude, if you went to a ravewearing that . . . wow, that would be beast! Anyway, I guess what I'm gettingat is, anyone who's responsible for gracing this good earth with greenrabbits, in my book, ought to be considered a hero. So Mr. Kac, I offeryou my heartfelt thanks, and I want you to know that my prayers are withAlba.
Benjamin Krohmal <bk8k@virginia.edu>
Alexandria, VA USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 16:26:41 (PDT)
Alba should be back home: The USA!!!!!!
K. Thuy Adkins <thuyadkins@hotmail.com>
Charlottesville, VA USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 15:52:50(PDT)
Please send Alba home with the Kac family. Give this little life itschance to be loved.
Joanna Cumming
USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 15:31:59 (PDT)
I love Alba.....
sofia santos <ssantosaga.org>
Falls Church, VA USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 13:17:45 (PDT)
Abla should be FREE but it does not mean that E.Kac is the owner ofthat rabbit. This rabbit is scientific creater!!! I think Mr.Kac just tryingto show himself besides this rabbit.....
Anonymous
USA - Wednesday, October 18, 2000 at 05:12:51 (PDT)
Eduardo Kac's GFB-Bunny project brings up critical contemporary issueson the social and cultural impact of new biotechnologies in our lives.Alba has a space in our social life and she needs to go home!
Mel Patero
USA - Tuesday, October 17, 2000 at 10:24:45 (PDT)
The idea of genetically altering a bunny for art has mind bogglingimplications. Art should help us question how genetic research affectshumanity. I am not sure I would like a jellybunny of my own even thoughthe implications are not clear cut.
Angela Kelly <amkpph@rit.edu>
Rochester, NY USA - Tuesday, October 17, 2000 at 10:21:51 (PDT)
Free Albart !
L'epongistes <robic@umb.u-strasbg.fr>
Strasbourg, F - Monday, October 16, 2000 at 09:11:01 (PDT)
Alba should live in a place where she will get attention and affection.
Ed Bennett
USA - Sunday, October 15, 2000 at 19:18:51 (PDT)
ARRECTIS AURIBUS, the sanguine expectation for the consummated marriage of Science to Art waxes intently with the first forays into transgenic art. Can human imagination be confided in, however, to fashion a Creation more tremendous than that hitherto generated by the predicatedly unconcious course of evolution?
It is doubtful, if gen-engineers should gain impetus through commercial interests; the convictionless engines of profit are necessarily held in check by bio-ethicists, culled from the ranks of the seminaries and assorted rights NGOs, who will protest any creative exercise of genetic invention beyond that which benefits humanity as in the fields of medicine, saving lives, and agriculture, feeding the hungry. Although the entertainment industry may wish to employ transgenic artists as ring-masters for the crass and childish amusements which the public if with a guilty conscience will demand, the moralists will undoubtedly not have it. Yet, in the event that they will ultimately not circumscribe the genetic craft within strictly humanitarian ends, after an hundred years of the robotics, information, and bio-tech industries booming in concomitance with social policies purposed to foster through gene therapies the rooting out of such as "the rape gene" and other vestiges from our animalistic past, we should expect to find a planet-sprawling race of tele-tubbies - diminutive, everlastingly blithe eunuchs beguiled by a wireless totalitarianism so absolute as to offend even Hitler! Natural selection has in the labyrinthine ages whipped and whetted shapeless bio-mass to flourish a terrific variegation of life-forms, excruciating Man
at the summit of this plenum. So exalted into self-conciousness, a regretable trait of humanity evinces the ignominious tendency to loathe the worldly
genomachy without which it never could have existed. Now, with the emerging technologies nigh at hand, they think themselves poised to conquer death,
expunge suffering, and eradicate the ferocious lusts which Nature has cultivated within.
I look forward to the thwarting of their expectations with the prospect that as the main-stream drifts, by the lures and compulsions of the new-tech
marketers and bureaucrats, towards consummate complaisance and terminal genetic perfection, a venemous undertoe will well up, roused by the satanic conceit of pretenders to deity, ignited by the resourceful mischeiviousness of aesthetic terrorists, commissioned by the prurient wit of obscenely rich
libertines; stimulated from undercurrents such as these, evolution shall truly escalate into realms astonishing even unto IHVH.
So mote it be!
SergePeter Gennom <spgennom@020.co.uk>
Friday, October 13, 2000 at 23:47:35 (CDT)
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