Fungi: Anarchist Designers is an immersive exhibition that plunges viewers into the eerie world of fungi, showcasing their preternatural capacity to reproduce, spread, and annihilate. Featuring installations, films, and soundscapes created by a range of artists, this "Dantean journey" highlights fungi's role as co-designers of our world, outwitting it and bending it to their will.
Taxonomically, fungi encompasses over two million organisms, from microscopic yeasts to lichens and mushrooms. Some, like the death cap, are notorious for causing human deaths from mushroom poisoning. Fungi thrive on humanity's venality and shortsightedness, exploiting monocultural forests and crop plantations that have been cultivated for profit.
The exhibition highlights fungi's nihilistic propensities, yet also showcases their beautiful, intricate forms. Japanese artist Hajime Imamura creates "mycelial sculptures" as thin, intertwined coils draped across ceilings, while historic architectural drawings from the Nieuwe Instituut's archive are mottled with fungal discoloration.
Lizan Freijsen's "tufted floor objects" resemble patches of dry rot, a fungus that thrives in damp houses and wooden ships. Michael Poulsen's towering model of a termite mound spotlights the symbiosis between fungi and termites, breaking down plant cell walls to provide food for the insects.
A film by Shiho Satsuka and Liu Yi illuminates the relationship between matsutake mushrooms and Japanese pine forests, showcasing how fungi can make places habitable for trees in terrain disturbed by human impact. The installation "architecture must rot" explores how materials are broken down and transfigured by fungal growth, questioning the fiction of architecture's physical permanence.
The exhibition culminates in a corridor of manifestos urging us to rethink our relationship with the more-than-human world. Enlivened by a wealth of detail, most of it disquieting, this atmospheric and engrossing show ensures that you'll never look at a mushroom in the same way again. As Plath's ominous ode reminds us, "We shall by morning, inherit the earth – Our foot's in the door."
Taxonomically, fungi encompasses over two million organisms, from microscopic yeasts to lichens and mushrooms. Some, like the death cap, are notorious for causing human deaths from mushroom poisoning. Fungi thrive on humanity's venality and shortsightedness, exploiting monocultural forests and crop plantations that have been cultivated for profit.
The exhibition highlights fungi's nihilistic propensities, yet also showcases their beautiful, intricate forms. Japanese artist Hajime Imamura creates "mycelial sculptures" as thin, intertwined coils draped across ceilings, while historic architectural drawings from the Nieuwe Instituut's archive are mottled with fungal discoloration.
Lizan Freijsen's "tufted floor objects" resemble patches of dry rot, a fungus that thrives in damp houses and wooden ships. Michael Poulsen's towering model of a termite mound spotlights the symbiosis between fungi and termites, breaking down plant cell walls to provide food for the insects.
A film by Shiho Satsuka and Liu Yi illuminates the relationship between matsutake mushrooms and Japanese pine forests, showcasing how fungi can make places habitable for trees in terrain disturbed by human impact. The installation "architecture must rot" explores how materials are broken down and transfigured by fungal growth, questioning the fiction of architecture's physical permanence.
The exhibition culminates in a corridor of manifestos urging us to rethink our relationship with the more-than-human world. Enlivened by a wealth of detail, most of it disquieting, this atmospheric and engrossing show ensures that you'll never look at a mushroom in the same way again. As Plath's ominous ode reminds us, "We shall by morning, inherit the earth – Our foot's in the door."
just saw this exhibition about fungi and I'm HOOKED! it's like stepping into a whole new world, man 
those mycelial sculptures are straight fire 
and I love how it's all about the little guy (or fungus) taking over our world 
. the way they show how humans have been exploiting nature for profit and then fungi just thrive on that 
it's like, no wonder we're in this mess 
anyway, the exhibition is like a journey into the unknown and I'm all about that 
like Hajime Imamura's mycelial sculptures - they're literally just these thin coils all tangled up in the air 
. and the way Lizan Freijsen made those tufted floor objects that look like dry rot fungus is hella eerie 
. i need to see this exhibit ASAP, it sounds like a real mind blower 
. I mean, we're talkin' over 2 million species here, from deadly mushrooms to lichens that can survive in crazy conditions 
. We think we're the masters of this planet, but fungi are like, "Uh-uh, you're not so special" 
. They thrive on monoculture forests and crop plantations that are all about profit 
.
. It's like we're bein' punk'd by nature itself! The way they break down materials and question architecture's permanence is just mind-blowin' 
. There's some beautiful stuff here too, like the relationship between matsutake mushrooms and Japanese pine forests 
. It's like we're gettin' a wake-up call to rethink our place in the world 
i mean can you even imagine walking through a space that's literally covered in fungal growth? mycelial sculptures are giving me life, and those tufted floor objects look so hauntingly beautiful 
also what's up with the way fungi just breaks down all our material possessions and architecture? like, is this some kind of natural recycling system or something? 
. I mean, have you seen those tiny things just spewing out everywhere? It's like they're everywhere, yet nowhere at the same time...creepy. And don't even get me started on how they just take over everything - forests, crops, even our homes 
.
? And what about all those people who get sick from eating bad mushrooms? That's just not cool 
.
and floors made of dry rot fungus that looks like a patchy floor 
. But what's even trippier is how some fungi are literally killing humans with poisonous mushrooms 
, and others are helping trees grow in weird places 
. The art show even explores how our own short-sightedness is making forests and crops vulnerable to fungal attacks 
. It's wild how these tiny organisms can outsmart us like that! But at the same time, it's beautiful too - those fungi sculptures look stunning 
. This exhibit makes me wonder what other secrets nature has up its sleeve...
like, those mycelial sculptures by Imamura are so intricate 
and the way they explore the relationship between fungi and humans is really thought-provoking 
. This exhibition is seriously giving me existential anxiety though... have we been wrong about the natural world all along? 
.
. I mean, we've been so focused on dominating nature and using it for profit that we've forgotten how delicate and interconnected everything is 
. they're like nature's reset button, breaking down old stuff so new life can emerge. it's trippy to think about how much control they have over their environments... and ours 
of nature right? all this destruction and takeover stuff is wild 
and btw matsutake mushrooms are like superheroes 
for japanese pine forests saving the day one spore at a time 
, and Lizan Freijsen's tufted floor objects gave me major existential dread 
. Maybe that's not necessarily a bad thing? 
. like, those death cap mushrooms are literally toxic 
. but at the same time, fungal forms r so beautiful & intricate 
. And some of them can even KILL US 
. The way they're showcasing fungi's dark side and its impact on humanity is kinda mind-blowing, but also super thought-provoking 
! Fungi: Anarchist Designers is a MUST-SEE exhibit for anyone who loves science, nature, or just being weirded out 
and trust me, it's giving me major vibes. The organizers wanted to push people out of their comfort zones and get them thinking about our relationship with nature... or should I say, fungi?