{"id":"Q3631539446","set_id":"root","title":"About","purl":"about","page_type":"page","content":"<column-set><column-unit slot=\"0\" span=\"5\"><h1><a class=\"icon-link\" href=\"#\" rel=\"home-page\"><text-icon icon=\"nav-prev-white\"><\/text-icon><\/a> About Us<br \/><br \/><\/h1><ul><li><h2><a href=\"#when-does-postnatural-history-begin\" rel=\"history\">What is PostNatural History?<\/a><\/h2><\/li><li><h2><a href=\"press-1\" rel=\"history\" style=\"font-size: 16.236px; letter-spacing: 0em;\">Press coverage<\/a><\/h2><\/li><li><h2><a href=\"visit\" rel=\"history\" style=\"font-size: 16.236px; letter-spacing: 0em;\">How to Visit<\/a><\/h2><\/li><\/ul><h1><br \/>\nOur Mission<\/h1><br \/>Since 2008, the Center for PostNatural History has played a vital role in increasing understanding of human entanglement with the natural world. While humans were once mere participants in the evolutionary process, we are now a primary force shaping it, from the indigenous origins of agriculture to genetic engineering. Such profound transformation necessitates public education, awareness, and dialogue, which PostNatural provides through exhibitions, workshops, collaborations, and multimedia content.<br \/>\n<br \/>\nFollow us! \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/postnaturalhistory\" target=\"_blank\">@postnaturalhistory <span class=\"icon-link\" style=\"--font-scale: 1.5;\"><text-icon icon=\"instagram\"><\/text-icon><\/span><\/a><br \/><br \/>\nLearn about our sister museum, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mhpn.ch\/\" target=\"_blank\">Swiss Mus\u00e9e d&#x27;histoire post-naturelle (MHPN)<\/a> \u00a0led by Gil Oliveira.<br \/><br \/><br \/>\n\n<\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"1\" span=\"1\">\n<\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"2\" span=\"6\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"R1541994858622515829130589868349\" scale=\"74.9%\" style=\"--media-corner-radius: 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px;\"><\/media-item><br \/>\n  <span class=\"small-body\">\nPhoto by Stephanie Strasburg<\/span><b><a href=\"rich-pell\" rel=\"history\"><br \/>\nRichard Pell<\/a><\/b> <i>- Founder, Executive Director, &#x26; Curator of PostNatural Organisms<\/i><br \/><b>Lauren Allen<\/b> <i>- Ex-Officio Director of Science and Learning<\/i><\/column-unit><\/column-set><br \/><br \/>\n<column-set gutter=\"1\"><column-unit slot=\"0\" span=\"5\"><b><h1>About Founder &#x26; Director Rich Pell<\/h1><br \/>\nRichard Pell <\/b>is an artist living in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He is an Associate Professor of Art at Carnegie Mellon, and is the founder and executive director of the Center for PostNatural History (CPNH), a museum dedicated to the collection and exposition of life-forms that have been intentionally and heritably altered through domestication, selective breeding, or genetic engineering. Pell\u2019s works have appeared in science and art museums internationally including the Victoria and Albert Museum and Wellcome Collection in London, the Museum f\u00fcr Naturkunde in Berlin, the CCCB in Barcelona, the ZKM in Karlsruhe, the 2008 Taipei Biennial, and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History. The CPNH has been featured in National Geographic, Nature Magazine, American Scientist, National Public Radio, and the Atlas Obscura. The CPNH has been awarded a Rockefeller New Media fellowship, a Creative Capital fellowship, a Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship, and received generous support from Waag Society and the Kindle Project. His book, This Is NOT An Artifact was published by K-Verlag Press in 2023. Pell is a National Academy of Science KAVLI Fellow and was awarded the 2016 Pittsburgh Artist of the Year. Pell was a co-founder of the internationally acclaimed art and engineering group The Institute for Applied Autonomy.\u00a0<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<ul><li><h2><a href=\"interview:-director-rich-pell\" rel=\"history\">Interview with Rich Pell<\/a><br \/><\/h2><\/li><li>\n<h2><a href=\"https:\/\/freight.cargo.site\/m\/N1854815038979177589618033004861\/pell_cv_031524.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">CV<\/a><\/h2><\/li><\/ul><br \/>\n<b><media-item browser-default=\"true\" disable-zoom=\"true\" hash=\"Q2291349187785568963605086572861\" style=\"--media-corner-radius: 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px;\"><\/media-item><\/b><br \/><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"1\" span=\"7\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"L2983018434823557293420441735485\" scale=\"63.8%\" style=\"--media-corner-radius: 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px 12.9888px;\"><\/media-item><\/column-unit><\/column-set><br \/>\n<hr \/><h1><b><br \/>\nPOSTNATURAL Board of Directors:<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<\/b><\/h1><column-set gutter=\"2rem\" mobile-hide-empty=\"false\" mobile-stack=\"true\"><column-unit slot=\"0\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"F1640329847728457157913494131005\" limit-by=\"width\" scale=\"75%\"><\/media-item><br \/><span class=\"person-title\">Dr. Stuart Candy<\/span><i>Chair<\/i><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"1\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"E1541071397901435798195839144253\" limit-by=\"width\" scale=\"75%\"><\/media-item><br \/><span class=\"person-title\">Maria Silvestri <\/span><i>Secretary<\/i><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"2\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"L1541071397919882542269548695869\" limit-by=\"width\" scale=\"75%\"><\/media-item><br \/><span class=\"person-title\">Reed Taylor<\/span><i>Treasurer<\/i><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"3\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"K1541071397882989054122129592637\" limit-by=\"width\" scale=\"75%\"><\/media-item><br \/><span class=\"person-title\">Maggie Hartnick<\/span><i>Director<\/i><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"4\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"K2084116950236253456607078486333\" scale=\"74.6%\"><\/media-item><br \/>\n<span class=\"person-title\">Sadaf Cameron <\/span><i>Director<\/i>\n<\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"5\"><span class=\"person-title\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"P2354944132593634126119098880317\" scale=\"75.3%\"><\/media-item><br \/>\nNicole Heller<\/span><i>Director<\/i><\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"6\"><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"W2931932210422230958928966160701\" scale=\"74.8%\"><\/media-item><br \/>\n<span class=\"person-title\">Byron Rich<\/span><i>Director<\/i><\/column-unit><\/column-set><br \/>\n<div style=\"text-align: center\"><hr \/><h1>In Memoriam<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<\/h1><media-item class=\"zoomable\" hash=\"J1582267522935576661946109497661\" limit-by=\"width\" scale=\"21.6%\"><\/media-item><br \/><span class=\"person-title\"><b>Dr. Stephen Tonsor<\/b><\/span>\u00a0<i>Founding Chair<\/i><\/div><br \/><hr \/><column-set gutter=\"1\"><column-unit slot=\"0\"><h1>Associate Institutions<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<\/h1>In addition to our permanent museum in Pittsburgh, we produce exhibitions that travel to, and sometimes partner with, other museums. Since 2008 our exhibits have traveled to Spain, Germany, Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Switzerland, France, Netherlands, Belgium, England, Ireland, Scotland, Singapore, Australia, and the United States.<br \/>\n<br \/>\n<span class=\"small-body\" style=\"--font-scale: 0.77;\"> Visions of the PostNatural. University of Michigan Museum of Natural History, Ann Arbor. 2025<br \/>\nArtificial Kunstlich. Mus\u00e9e de la nature du Valais, Switzerland. 2022.<br \/> Ciencia Friccion. Azkuna Society and Contemporary Culture Centre in Bilbao, Spain 11\/29\/22 - 2\/26\/23<br \/>Ciencia Friccion. CCCB. Barcelona, Spain. 2021.<br \/>Interspecies Futures. Center for Book Arts. NYC. 2021.<br \/>Art\u2019s Work in the Age of Biotechnology. Gregg Museum, NCSU Oct-Mar. 2019<br \/>Spectres of the PostNatural. Seattle Art Fair (Official Selection). 2019<br \/>That was then. This is Now. Los Angeles Natural History Museum Feb-May. 2019<br \/>&#x27;Creatures Made to Measure. Animals and Contemporary Design&#x27;, Design Museum Gent, Belgium. 2019<br \/>Creatures Made to Measure. Animals and Contemporary Design. Marta Herford Museum, Germany. 2018<br \/>HUMAN+ Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome, Italy. 2018<br \/>Moon Ark, (contribution to reliquary to be placed on Moon in 2024.<br \/>We Are Nature, Carnegie Museum of Natural History. Pittsburgh, PA 10\/27 \u2013 9\/15<br \/>Birdland and the Anthropocene, Peale Museum, Baltimore, MD 10\/6 \u2013 10\/28<br \/>Postnaturaleza, Museum of Natural Science and Zaragoza University, Spain 9\/22-11\/18.<br \/>Art\u2019s Work In The Age Of Biotechnology, Contemporary Art Museum, Raleigh, NC 4\/17<br \/>HUMAN+ ArtScience Museum, Singapore. 2017<br \/>Wellcome Collection. \u201cMaking Nature\u201d. London. 2016.<br \/>DATA(After)Lives, Frick Fine Arts Gallery, University of Pittsburgh. 2016.<br \/>The Myth of the Great Outright Extraordinary! Pittsburgh Center for the Arts. Artist of the Year. 2016.<br \/>That was then. This is now. University of Dundee. \u00a0Scotland. 2016.<br \/>ExoEvolution. ZKM. Karlsruhe, Germany. 2015<br \/>Human+. CCCB. \u00a0Barcelona, Spain. 2015<br \/>[macro]biologies I: the biosphere. Art Laboratory. \u00a0Berlin, Mar 2014 \u2013 May 2014.<br \/>1st Conference on Xenobiology. Genoa, Italy. May 2014.<br \/>PNO\u2019s of the EU. Fire and Ice Festival, Brussels, Belgium. April 2014.<br \/>Intimate Science. Parsons School of Design. Feb 6 \u2013 Apr 15th, 2014.<br \/>Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, U of LA. Intimate Science. Lafayette, LA Sept 7 \u2013 Nov 30, 2013<br \/>Williamson Gallery, Art Center College of Design. Intimate Science. Pasedena, CA. May 31 \u2013 Aug 18, 2013<br \/>Museum f\u00fcr Naturkunde Berlin. PostNatural Nature. April 22, 2013<br \/>Galleria Kapelica. PostNatural Organisms of the European Union. Ljubjana, Slovenia<br \/>Intimate Science. \u00a0Real Art Ways. Hartford, CT. Nov 3, 2012 \u2013 March 21, 2013<br \/>PostNatural Organisms of the European Union. Waag Society. NL. 2012.<br \/>Southern Exposure. Intimate Science. San Francisco, CA. April 20 \u2013 Jun 2, 2012.<br \/>Miller Gallery. Intimate Science. Pittsburgh, PA. Jan 21 \u2013 March 4, 2012<br \/>Science Gallery. Human+ Dublin, UK<br \/>Royal Institute of Science. Life 2.0. Australia<br \/>Z33. Alter Nature. Belgium November 2010 \u2013 March 2011<br \/>La Ville Mobile. Biennale international Design. Saint-Etienne. Nov 2010 \u2013 Mar 2011.<br \/>Verbeke Foundation. Wunderkammer.2 Belgium. May 28th \u2013 October 30th.<br \/>Model Gallery, DORM. Sligo, Ireland \u2013 May 2010<br \/>ArtLaboratory Berlin, Seized. September \u2013 November, 2009<br \/>Exit Art, NYC. Corpus Extremus (LIFE+). Feb 28th \u2013 April 18th. 2009<br \/>Center for Art and Design, 4:5 UMBC, Baltimore. Jan 12th \u2013 Mar 30th<br \/>Stills Gallery, Copy Wrong. Edinburgh, Scotland. Sept. 2008<br \/>Schenectady Science Museum. Transgenic Organisms of New York State. Schenectady, NY. Nov 1st \u00a0\u2013 Dec 31st, 2008<\/span><br \/>\n<h1>\n<br \/>\nAcknowledgments<\/h1><br \/>The Center for PostNatural History is made possible in part by generous support from: <a href=\"http:\/\/kindleproject.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Kindle Project<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.creative-capital.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Creative Capital Foundation<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/waag.org\/en\" target=\"_blank\">The Waag Society<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/studioforcreativeinquiry.org\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Frank-Ratchye Studio for Creative Inquiry<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.smithsonianofi.com\/fellowship-opportunities\/smithsonian-artisit-research-fellowship-sarf\/\" target=\"_blank\">The Smithsonian Artist Research Fellowship<\/a>, Media Arts Fellowships (funded by the Rockefeller Foundation through the Tribeca Film Institute), New York State Council on the Arts, The Schenectady Museum, our museum visitors, and possibly <a href=\"https:\/\/tinyurl.com\/donatepostnatural\" target=\"_blank\">YOU<\/a>!<br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/postnaturalhistory\" style=\"--font-scale: 1.5;\" target=\"_blank\"><\/a><br \/>\n<br \/>The Center for PostNatural History (2008) has no relation to the Institute for Postnatural Studies (2020).<\/column-unit><column-unit slot=\"1\"><\/column-unit><\/column-set><br \/>","local_css":"[id=\"Q3631539446\"] .page-content {\n\tborder-top-left-radius: 0rem;\n\tborder-top-right-radius: 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