Glass Art and GMOs – Is there common ground?

Michael Meilahn had just completed a sculpture titled I Thought I Saw a GMO when protesters in Seattle took aim at the World Trade Organization and the issue of genetically altered agricultural products. Coincidence has little to do with the fact that Meilahn’s artwork happens to be riding the wave of a current international economic, political, and ethical debate involving the ‘genetically modified organism’ (GMO).

The image of an ear of corn is a familiar one to Meilahn, as is the idea and the reality of hybridization and genetic engineering. This artist is a farmer - a farmer who operates a grain farm west of Oshkosh, Wisconsin. He was well aware of the controversy surrounding bio-engineered seeds and plants long before it became a hot international media story.

In the '60s Meilahn went off to the University of Wisconsin-River Falls to earn an undergraduate degree in agriculture. Although he had always been interested in art, it was not until he happened upon the early unrefined glass blowing facility there that Michael became seduced by the medium and art itself. Michael later took time out from undergraduate school to serve with the Peace Corps in South America and travel in Europe. After completing his master's degree in art, he chose to return to the farm where he grew up.

Early on, he resisted mixing the two careers by purposefully keeping them separate. As life became more complicated and the two passions evolved into businesses, the tendency to ignore the overlap finally gave way to full resignation. The art imagery became a story about farming and farming became a business that demanded a more creative venue.

Photo (top): Shane VanBoxtel
Photo (bottom): Leisha Nebel