Self-Portrait #2: Site of Infection is an artwork by Svenja Kratz created for the Pandemic exhibition at Plimsoll Gallery in 2019, curated by Toby Juliff. The show commemorated the 100-year anniversary of the 1918–1919 Spanish flu pandemic and inadvertently foreshadowed the COVID-19 pandemic. Kratz’s piece featured a wax bust of herself, styled after classical depictions of female deities, that emitted vapor infused with her own DNA. This conceptual work explored the idea of viral infection as a method for genetic proliferation. Kratz speculated that by embedding fragments of her DNA within a virus, it might theoretically be possible to infect others, thus spreading her genetic material through various hosts. If such a virus targeted germ cells like sperm or eggs, the DNA could even be inherited by future generations, enabling a form of genetic legacy without traditional reproduction.

The work challenges the viewer’s comfort with the notion of genetic "contamination" and infection, highlighting our interconnectedness with other species and shared genetic material, a perspective influenced by Timothy Morton’s concept of multi-species ecologies. The piece aims to be both provocative and reflective, confronting fears around infection and genetic alteration while questioning the boundaries of individuality and notions of genetic legacy.