Urban Lichen, 2009

Wall papered photo print, 500x600cm, 2009

The lichenous fungi portrayed in this piece is a tiny and complex ecosystem, a small universe of its own. Carl von Linné struggled to fully classify such organisms and still today there is much we don’t fully understand. Just recently scientists have discovered that there are not only fungi and algae but also a set of specific bacteria involved in a very small scale of their symbiosis.

Clearly noticable in this photo intsallation is the pattern of the cup-shaped apotecia with the largest and most dense at the center. Many organism share this and interestingly even our cities follow a similar pattern. The powerful enlargment of this the image also brings out every lobe and crac allowing for the full spectrum of ambivalence in humanity’s relationship with nature: from disgust and fear to fascination and awe over it’s beauty.

The piece has also been exhibited in Colombia during 2014 with the group show Nordic Landscapes at the Bogota Museum of Modern Art, as well as in Helsingborg with the show Med känsla för grönt at Dunkers Kulturhus 2019.