Don't Try This At Home

“Don’t try this at home” is a sculptural installation for Eden Project's new permanent exhibition "Invisible You: The Human Microbiome" supported by The Wellcome Trust.It explores the complex story of faecal microbiota transplants, used for the treatment of long-term infections caused by the superbug Clostridium difficile. It is not entirely clear how or why these transplants work but they were approved by the National Institute for Heath and Care Excellence NICE in March 2014 and have a high success rate in cases where traditional antibiotic treatments have failed. However, the long-term effects are not entirely clear and there are concerns that the composition of our gut bacteria may affect us in untold ways, for example influencing our mood. This enigmatic work comprises a prepared faecal transplant, textiles stained and patterned with gut bacteria, anatomical glass, and an unlocked carved wooden box. All the biological elements have been sterilised.