LICHENIZED VERSIONS OF HUMANITY
I engage with material intra-activity by introducing organisms and matter which have the potential to physically affect and transform each other: plants and fungi, organic matter such as soil and compost, along with chemicals and plastics. When I conceive these environments, awareness of the vibrancy of the non-human is heightened. I think about how the human is also implicated, through the remnants of capitalist trash I take from my own life or souvenirs from the sidewalk, or through the microorganisms I introduce from my own body when making the work. All these aspects begin to intermingle and act together, forming new relationships within the gallery—lichenization: a philosophical concept in which a new entity is formed, composed of matter acting together, including matter that produces energy and matter that consumes energy.
Lichens are symbionts of a fungi, paired with algae or cyanobacteria, and occasionally yeast. It wasn’t until 2016 that a study revealed that yeast is a third microorganism within some varieties of lichen that creates protective acids (Spribille et al. 488). Instead of having a parasitic relationship, these three microorganisms are mutualistic, meaning all organisms benefit, or, at least, are not harmed in their coexistence. How would our perspectives change if we viewed ourselves not only as mutualistic composite organisms in terms of our bodies as holobionts, but also as lichens consisting of holobionts and nature?
Fig 2. Documentation of Alectoria sarmentosa lichen, 2018.
The heterotrophic fungus provides much of the organism’s physical structure as well as the protection against extreme conditions, while the cyanobacteria or algae is autotrophic and can provide nutrients through photosynthesis. Within this symbiosis between two organisms, there is a plethora of variation. Some lichens are made from as many as three different fungi, in addition to fungal yeast (Jenkins and Richards 88). The biological functions of the yeast are still being researched, but a working theory is that the yeast helps protect the lichen through the production of toxic acids. How can these qualities be incorporated and affect the way we approach living? According to biologist Michael Gross, it is through this collaborative mutualistic effort that lichens are able to inhabit and bring life to areas that have been considered inhospitable (183). Through the acceleration of consumption through capitalism, we are very quickly making our living environment inhospitable.
The Finnish artist duop, nabbteeri works with ideas of unnatural barriers and organic systems, weaving inhospitality with the holobiont with an unsettling ease. They make installation work that incorporates sculpture, video, and living organisms. The following quote is taken from their artist statement:
Multispecies constellations teach us indispensable things in relation to ourselves and the world, helping to unravel the individualistic, destructive ways of human living. In our recent work we have observed multispecies cultures, hoping to relearn how to form communities and share spaces, whether bodies, other cavities or clearings, with other critters.
Fig 3. nabbteeri, Spinelessness2, 2019.
Their installations, void of human presence, are composed of discrete elements (eg. video, physical sculpture), which morph fluidly into the other. Even the electrical cords are incorporated thoughtfully to become a visual part of the piece— a visual analogy of multispecies connectivity and permeable boundaries. There are elements to the work that feel violent at times and these moments occur when strict boundaries are enforced, such as the pigeon-deterrent spikes in Spinelessness2 (2019). Applied on surfaces of objects, such as the gravel filled sacks and display monitors, they read as a defense mechanism when thinking of the installation in terms of biology. Weapons against biology have now been adapted to benefit it, reinforcing its physical boundaries against external forces. The spikes form a protective barrier and function similarly to the vulipina acid toxin that yeast in some lichen creates, acting as a deterrent.
Fig. 4 + 5 Skin as it Peels Back, 2020.
Thinking about lichenization as a possible philosophical framework provides insight into how my practice evolves and organically manifests: where artworks, although sometimes individually conceived, at times begin to fuse together to form new narratives and intra-actions. For example, what began as a focus to create silicone castings that captured traces of moss and lichen for the sculpture Skin as it Peels Back (2020) [fig. 4 and 5] led to new discoveries which shifted my intentions, transforming the scope of the work, placing more value on the ephemeral outcomes—becoming a breeding ground for interspecies collaboration and intra-action. Inevitably the installations have a temporary lifespan, but can be reimagined and reconfigured so that nothing involved goes to waste. These methodologies speak directly to forms of lichenized life, in which matter is both metabolized and energy is produced. In my view, energy is the creative byproduct of contamination-as-collaboration. Finding meaning in assemblages of matter is an act of autotrophic energy production. ︎︎︎︎︎︎︎︎︎🕳️
Lichens are symbionts of a fungi, paired with algae or cyanobacteria, and occasionally yeast. It wasn’t until 2016 that a study revealed that yeast is a third microorganism within some varieties of lichen that creates protective acids (Spribille et al. 488). Instead of having a parasitic relationship, these three microorganisms are mutualistic, meaning all organisms benefit, or, at least, are not harmed in their coexistence. How would our perspectives change if we viewed ourselves not only as mutualistic composite organisms in terms of our bodies as holobionts, but also as lichens consisting of holobionts and nature?
Fig 2. Documentation of Alectoria sarmentosa lichen, 2018.
The heterotrophic fungus provides much of the organism’s physical structure as well as the protection against extreme conditions, while the cyanobacteria or algae is autotrophic and can provide nutrients through photosynthesis. Within this symbiosis between two organisms, there is a plethora of variation. Some lichens are made from as many as three different fungi, in addition to fungal yeast (Jenkins and Richards 88). The biological functions of the yeast are still being researched, but a working theory is that the yeast helps protect the lichen through the production of toxic acids. How can these qualities be incorporated and affect the way we approach living? According to biologist Michael Gross, it is through this collaborative mutualistic effort that lichens are able to inhabit and bring life to areas that have been considered inhospitable (183). Through the acceleration of consumption through capitalism, we are very quickly making our living environment inhospitable.
The Finnish artist duop, nabbteeri works with ideas of unnatural barriers and organic systems, weaving inhospitality with the holobiont with an unsettling ease. They make installation work that incorporates sculpture, video, and living organisms. The following quote is taken from their artist statement:
Multispecies constellations teach us indispensable things in relation to ourselves and the world, helping to unravel the individualistic, destructive ways of human living. In our recent work we have observed multispecies cultures, hoping to relearn how to form communities and share spaces, whether bodies, other cavities or clearings, with other critters.
Fig 3. nabbteeri, Spinelessness2, 2019.
Their installations, void of human presence, are composed of discrete elements (eg. video, physical sculpture), which morph fluidly into the other. Even the electrical cords are incorporated thoughtfully to become a visual part of the piece— a visual analogy of multispecies connectivity and permeable boundaries. There are elements to the work that feel violent at times and these moments occur when strict boundaries are enforced, such as the pigeon-deterrent spikes in Spinelessness2 (2019). Applied on surfaces of objects, such as the gravel filled sacks and display monitors, they read as a defense mechanism when thinking of the installation in terms of biology. Weapons against biology have now been adapted to benefit it, reinforcing its physical boundaries against external forces. The spikes form a protective barrier and function similarly to the vulipina acid toxin that yeast in some lichen creates, acting as a deterrent.
Fig. 4 + 5 Skin as it Peels Back, 2020.
Thinking about lichenization as a possible philosophical framework provides insight into how my practice evolves and organically manifests: where artworks, although sometimes individually conceived, at times begin to fuse together to form new narratives and intra-actions. For example, what began as a focus to create silicone castings that captured traces of moss and lichen for the sculpture Skin as it Peels Back (2020) [fig. 4 and 5] led to new discoveries which shifted my intentions, transforming the scope of the work, placing more value on the ephemeral outcomes—becoming a breeding ground for interspecies collaboration and intra-action. Inevitably the installations have a temporary lifespan, but can be reimagined and reconfigured so that nothing involved goes to waste. These methodologies speak directly to forms of lichenized life, in which matter is both metabolized and energy is produced. In my view, energy is the creative byproduct of contamination-as-collaboration. Finding meaning in assemblages of matter is an act of autotrophic energy production. ︎︎︎︎︎︎︎︎︎🕳️