Novogen (2017–2018) is a project focusing on the eponymous breed of chickens, genetically engineered to lay eggs for the production of vaccines and other pharmaceutical products.
Considering Novogen White hens and their role in the pharmaceutical industry, the work poses questions and dilemmas about mankind’s relation to nature and the price of our health and longevity. At the same time, by taking the chicken as a metaphor, it reflects on the notion of the workforce and our commodified existence.
The core of the project is formed by an installation of 168 individual portraits of Novogen White hens. This installation is complemented by a series of photographs following the egg’s way through the process of vaccine production. Its last part is a selection of extracts from the management guide of Novogen White hens and the marketing material of the company which produces them.