New York- and Beijing-based artist Xin Liu sent her wisdom tooth into outer space in a custom built, robotic machine as part of an art project, according to an October 28 report in the Los Angeles Times.
Liu is arts curator of the MIT Media Lab Space Exploration Initiative and an adviser to the Art + Technology Lab at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, the Times reported. Her project, "Living Distance," was aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard rocket, which launched in May 2019.
Now returned from space, the tooth is part of a sculpture installation called "Synthetic Wilderness" at Honor Fraser Gallery in Culver City, CA, through December 18.
"'Living Distance' is both a personal fantasy and a serious space mission," Liu told the Times. "A wisdom tooth is sent to outer space and back down to Earth again. Carried by the crystalline robotic sculpture, the tooth becomes a newborn entity in outer space."
