Symbioser

In Symbioser (Symbioses), Sofia Eliasson alternates between past, future, and present. By using old craft techniques, artificial intelligence, and the creations of other life forms, she investigates evolution, transformation, and possible versions of life. Starting from the lady’s-slipper orchid—one of the only wild-growing orchids in Norway—she feeds artificial intelligence with her own visual explorations, existing image material, and text to conjure up alternative versions of the orchid. What would it look like if it had been pollinated by aliens? Or if parts of it were enlarged or reduced? If it was not at all dependent on the chalk-rich soil it has so meticulously taken root in? The artificial intelligence responds, throwing out suggestions and possibilities that Eliasson takes and reworks. By carving out the various representations of the orchid in soapstone, she creates forms in a material that has been part of the cultural heritage since the Middle Ages. The forms are filled with tin, which gives a negative form and then a positive cast of the orchid as an object. Exhibited together as a pair, Eliasson plays with transformation and leaps between time periods — a fossil of a potential future coupled with the technique and material utility of the past. Botany created by artificial intelligence meets ancient casting techniques via contemporary technology.

Full exhibition text by Sara Kollstrøm Heilevang / KRAFT

Review: Symbiosens avtrykk by Azar Alzharif / Kunstavisen.no