This is one of the largest and most fragile of Jerram’s sculptures. Recent exhibitions of this work include the Museum of Art and Design, NYC; Glasstress, Venice Biennale; Synthesis, Manchester Science Festival; Oklahoma City Museum; Cosmo Caixa Museum, Barcelona.
Escherichia coli, commonly abbreviated to E. coli, is a Gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium that is commonly found in the lower intestine of warm-blooded organisms (endotherms). Most E. coli strains are harmless, but some, such as serotype O157:H7, can cause serious food poisoning in humans, and are occasionally responsible for product recalls. The harmless strains are part of the normal flora of the gut, and can benefit their hosts by producing vitamin K2 and by preventing the establishment of pathogenic bacteria within the intestine.
See this related 90ft inflatable sculpture of E.coli Luke recently created.
A Sense of Scale
This great slide bar animation shows how large bacteria are in relation to viruses.
Permanent Public Collections
Editions of this work are in the Chazen Museum (US) and the Wellcome Collection (UK).
Read about it in the Huffington Post
Works Available for Sale
Sold as Limited edition of 5
120cm long, including tails x 25cm high, including hairs