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Object Timeline

  • We acquired this object.

2013

  • Work on this object began.

2016

2025

  • You found it!

Patent Drawing, Self Inflating Antipathogenic Membrane, from Designing for the Sixth Extinction

This is a Patent drawing. It was designed by Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg.

This object is not part of the Cooper Hewitt's permanent collection. It was able to spend time at the museum on loan from Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg as part of Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial.

It is dated 2013. Its medium is digital print with aluminum frame.

Diagrammed here is a proposal for a bioengineered organism designed to treat the infection that causes Sudden Oak Death. Functioning as a pump, this single-use device is distributed via spores among oak trees and remains dormant until called into action. The self-inflating structure forces serum into the infection site. Ginsberg creates seductive narrative images and technical patent diagrams that suggest the business of intellectual property.

It is credited Courtesy of Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg.

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Its dimensions are

H x W: 41.4 × 31.5 cm (16 5/16 × 12 3/8 in.) (framed)

This object was previously on display as a part of the exhibition Beauty—Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial.

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian’s Terms of Use page.

If you would like to cite this object in a Wikipedia article please use the following template:

<ref name=CH>{{cite web |url=https://www-6.collection.cooperhewitt.org/objects/69192461/ |title=Patent Drawing, Self Inflating Antipathogenic Membrane, from Designing for the Sixth Extinction |author=Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum |accessdate=2 April 2025 |publisher=Smithsonian Institution}}</ref>