Mushroom Pillars
BRITZENALEUrbane Waldgarten Britz,
Leonberger Ring 54, 12349 Berlin
opening date: August 25th, 6pm
exhibition: August 26-27, 2023
An exhibiton curated on the controversial theme of ‘Sustainibility’; I thought a lot about the words origins, rooted in natural lifecycles of growth and degredation. Meanwhile making some mockery of the green-washed idea of exponential growth without an ability to be broken down for participation in life and death cycles.
Three large mushroom sculptures were developed out of paper remnants, sanitized recycled cardboard, organic wood, reformed plastic bottles and decorated with food colouring and bio glitter. Stuffed with mycelian seed, the purpose of these sculptures is to break down over several weeks by acting as a food source for local organisms, and a nutrient base for real edible oyster and pompom mushrooms to fruit from.
Taking place in a Food Forest (A diverse garden of edible plants that is designed to mimic symbiotic plant, animal, fungi and insect relationships found in natural ecosystems) in Britz Berlin. Curated by Britzenale 4’s topic of ‘sustainability’.
more infos here:
www.britzenale4.com
One week of degradation...
Curators Description:
Mushrooms, nature’s remarkable alchemists, inhabit and decompose discarded and unwanted materials, both organic and non-organic, transforming them into fertile soil for the next phase of their life cycle. The visible fruiting body that many associate with fungi is a vanishingly small part of these creatures. They grow in invisible, widely branching networks through earths and forests and are closely connected.
Lacy Barry creates a world that irritates and attracts through slight variance and bright colors. Questioning the notion of sustainability, the brightly coloured mushrooms sprout from the ground - adroned with biodegradable paints and glitter dust. With their colourful fruiting bodies, slimy button caps and spongy protrusions, these structures exude a beauty that mirrors the shape of the mushroom fruit. At the same time, the installation offers shadows, spaces for light, niches for nesting, surfaces for clinging and an airy space for living mycelium to grow.
As the mushrooms breathe their spores into the atmosphere, this sculptural glittering world reminds us to appreciate barely visible life systems ad acknowledge the continuous unfolding that surrounds us.
Year 2023
Medium: Recycling plastic, paper, cardboard, organic wood, food coloring, bio glitter and bio flour.
Photography copyright Lacy Barry 2023
