James Darling & Lesley Forwoods’ collaborative installation ‘Living Rocks: A Fragment of the Universe’ will be presented at ZKM: Centre for Art and Media, Karlsruhe in Germany as part of the exhibition ‘The Beauty of Early Life. Traces of Early Life’. This exhibition invites us to look at the emergence of life through artistic works from modern times to the present, complemented by scientific exhibits from the early days of life, right now, at this crossroads of a global climate and biodiversity crisis.
First exhibited at Hugo Michell Gallery in 2018 ‘Living Rocks: A Fragment of the Universe’ was selected as an Official Collateral Event of the 58th International Art exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia 2019, curated by Dr Lisa Slade and supported by The Art Gallery of South Australia.
‘Living Rocks: A Fragment of the Universe’ is a South Australian collaboration between Darling & Forwood, Jumpgate VR, composer Paul Stanhope, and the Australian String Quartet. ‘Living Rocks’ addresses the question: what was our planet three billion years ago? It celebrates the cosmic imperative of microbes in action through the universe, most notably their survival by way of the great events of extinction that have happened or are still to come on our planet. From an extensive pool emerge thrombolites that have been crafted, not by unimaginable time and the force of nature, but by the artists who employ the distinctive roots of an arid land eucalypt to create living rocks.
“The installation connects the present day to the beginning of life. It is a memory of our origin and a prophesy of our future.” - James Darling
‘The Beauty of Early Life. Traces of Early Life’ will be on display at ZKM: Centre for Art and Media, Karlsruhe from 26th March to 10 July 2022.