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Luke Jerram

Luke Jerram’s multidisciplinary practice spans sculpture, installation, and live art. Living in the UK but working internationally since 1997, Jerram creates art that captivates the imagination, inspiring audiences across the globe.

Developed since 2004, Jerram's Glass Microbiology series contemplates the global impact of disease. Because viruses are smaller than the wavelength of light, they inherently have no colour. By stripping away the artificial coloration typically added by the media, Jerram changes our understanding of these deadly phenomena, crafting jewel-like, colourless glass sculptures that expose a complex tension between aesthetic beauty and the fatal disease represented.

The spiky, translucent sculpture below represents the Malaria parasite (Plasmodium falciparum Merozoite) before it has entered the red blood cell. The sculpture is approximately 200,000 times larger than the actual parasite. The first edition of this artwork was made and auctioned in New York especially for the charity Malaria No More.

Today, these intricate sculptures reside in private collections and renowned museums worldwide. The series was featured at Glasstress during the Venice Biennale and the Museum of Arts and Design in New York City. In 2010, Jerram received the coveted Rakow Award for the series alongside a fellowship at the Museum of Glass, Washington. His work was also showcased at Tokyo's Mori Art Museum in 2009, exhibited alongside masterpieces by Damien Hirst, Andy Warhol, and Leonardo da Vinci.

Luke Jerram now lives and works in Bristol, UK.