COMPOST – ART RESIDENCY AND EXHIBITION 2019

Artists: Mihai Vereștiuc, Ana Maria Micu, Agnes Ársælsdóttir, Smaranda Ursuleanu, Anna Andrea Winther
Curator: Simona Nastac

Recent scientific studies have determined for the first time the weight of every class of living creatures on Earth: plants represent 82%, bacteria 13%, and all other beings, from insects to fungi, fish and animals – 5%, of which the human species only 0.01%. Although people seem insignificant compared to all other species, since the dawn of civilization, mankind has caused the disappearance of 83% of all wild mammals and half of plants, increasingly affecting the life of the planet. It is estimated that the current consumption rate will require three planets by 2050 to secure the specie’s life resources. The future of the Earth is more uncertain than ever for all living systems; a feeling of rot floats in the air. There is, however, hope, the hope that we are just composting, fermenting waste to reach a new fertility. Through the regenerative metaphor of compost, In Context Art Residency proposes an experiment meant to reconsider our impact on Earth, transforming Slănic into a fertile ground for collective learning and action, as well as for testing what could mean to be with all other live entities in the world for a better Anthropocene.

Full curatorial text, artists’ biographies, photo and video documentation of the one-month residency here.

In Context/Slănic Moldova is an artist in residence programme initiated and coordinated by Romanian artist Alina Georgiana Teodorescu in partnership with Slănic Moldova Town Hall. www.incontext.art