There is Art in Your Genes

The twains have met. Science has seeped into art, and genetic codes have attained iridescent hues.

An international brand arrives in India to create 8220;DNA portraits8221;8212; your genome sequences on canvas

The twains have met. Science has seeped into art, and genetic codes have attained iridescent hues. Now you can dip your 8220;love gene8221; NGF2 in infrared shades or flaunt your intelligence quotient on the walls by having the determining gene IGF-2 on a canvas splashed in flamingo pink. You don8217;t have to search elsewhere for art, just swab your cheek. And then get your genome sequence on a canvas. It can easily pass off as abstract art 8212; or even self portraits, with a scientific twist.

8220;This is absolute personalised art, reflecting your DNA,8221; says Qadir Rangwala, who has brought the internationally established, three-year-old brand DNA11 to India. It happened early this year, when on a visit to The Museum of Modern Art, New York, Rangwala spotted, amid the artwork of masters, a rather eerie canvas with helical structures floating on its surface. When informed that the work represented an individual8217;s DNA, he took a flight to Ottawa, Canada, for a meeting with the DNA11 founders 8212; Adrian Salamunovic and Nazim Ahmed. 8220;I knew instantly that the concept will work in India. I consulted friends, gallerists and art collectors and everyone was enthusiastic about it,8221; says Rangwala, 26.

That was in June. In September, Rangwala started DNA11 operations in India, from his office in Colaba, Mumbai. The procedure is simple. Those interested in an artistic interpretation of their gene code can place an order with Rangwala for a DNA portrait. A collection kit will be mailed to your doorstep. Using a foam-tipped instrument, swab the inside of your cheek to collect the cells. Transfer the sample onto a card and mail it back to Rangwala. It is then sent to a lab in Canada, where the unique sequences of the genome are replicated on a print or on canvas. Within four to six weeks of placing the order, a canvas in the colour of your choice, from the 25 combination options available, will be delivered. 8220;Several security precautions are taken. All DNA samples are destroyed after processing, and photography by the lab and the images are deleted from the server every six months,8221; says Rangwala.

For those who do not fancy the chromosome-inspired compositions, on offer are fingerprints and kiss portraits. The price for personalised art? While an 18 x 24 inch canvas costs Rs 30,000, a 36 x 54 inch canvas is priced at Rs 70,000. Priced highest, at Rs 1 lakh is a canvas that features the DNA of a family. Divided into four distinct segments, this could replace the family photograph in the drawing room. 8220;It can be passed down generations,8221; says Rangwala, and points out that orders are now pouring from across the country. 8220;We are just slightly short of the target of 30 canvases a month,8221; smiles Rangwala 8212; his own art collection includes his DNA imprints in shades of infrared.

Contact: artdna11.com