Ec(h)osystem

Resilient Ec(h)osystem
 

The artwork was part of an in situ exhibition on the catacombs of Petrikirche, it was a metaphor and artistic study of the coexistence of the bacterial microcosmos, man and architecture. The connection was established between the microbiota of the catacombs, cultivated in a big petri dish and the visitors through a vibrational sound system, which pretended to act as a reminding sound of our resilience, a psychological concept that allows us to overcome difficulties or to come back to the stability after a disturbance. 

.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

The ecological micro communities living our body and environment are narrowly connected to us. There is a connection between the intestinal microbiomes and our brain, our feelings and emotions (anxiety, “butterflies in the stomach” and even depression), and this connection is bilateral. Today, microbiologists say that the colonies of bacteria that inhabit our bodies can be used to treat many diseases, including affective disorders. It is important that bacteria are not simply “used” for the benefit of man, but also the question of the “good of bacteria” is raised. The depth and ramification of mutual influences is such that it calls into question the dominant today concept of the anthropocentric world of the man as a single entity or several connected. Each of the numerous entities lives autonomously, and at the same time, they are all connected with each other, creating a certain common experience of life. The non-anthropocentric worldview opens up other possibilities for the compatibility of microorganisms and people, allowing them to overcome global and local challenges.

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

​

 

The artwork resembled a resilient microbiota in a mega petri dish growing and changing colors during the four days exhibition. The visitors observed this process in which the microbial community grows after being disturbed in hostile conditions. moreover, it was possible for the visitors to deposit their depressive and anxious thoughts as difficult situations by a digital interface. Each text entry was translated into  DNA code, which is the language that life understands in all levels, then according to the detected emotions in the text,  a vibrational resonance pass through the Petri dish and the microbiota worked as s speaker of those conflictive thoughts. The technological microbiome was giving birth to sounds from the vibrating concerns of the visitor, and the sound dissipated into the catacombs creating a microbial resonance of resilience and changing the perception of the architectural space.