We Belong to Them
Mixed-media installation, 2024
RIXC Art Science Festival exhibition Symbiotic Sense(s), National Library of Latvia,
23/10/2024 – 07/12/2024
Trees are one of the shapers of our world, making diverse landscapes possible. With their deeply rooted collective generosity, they not only take care of one another but also create weather, build the atmosphere, heal, and shelter more creatures than people can count. The work focuses on six interconnected scenarios caused by the global climate crisis that impact trees: soil pollution, air pollution, rising temperatures and drought, loss of biodiversity, pest and disease proliferation, and shifts in growing seasons.
3D scans of trees taken in rural areas in the western part of Latvia are combined with speculative environments created using worldbuilding methods. The texts were written while wandering through forests, thinking on how to translate more-than-human voices for humans and contemplating the fact that without healthy forests, there is no future for us.
Work was commisioned for RIXC Art Science Festival exhibition Symbiotic Sense(s) at the National Library of Latvia in Riga. Curated by Rasa Šmite and Raitis Šmits.
Artists: Tatsuru Arai (JP/DE), Po-Hao Chi (TW), Santa France (LV), Sasha Litvintseva & Beny Wagner (UK/DE), Me And Other Me / Cenk Güzelis & Anna Pompermaier (AT/IT), Mónica Rikić (ES), Studio Above & Below (DE/UK), Sabīne Šnē (LV), T(n)C (DE/HU).
Photos: Lelde Gūtmane, Nina Gonzalez-Park
Image courtesy RIXC Gallery and Sabīne Šnē