Mycelicopia (film)
An hypnotic visual collage of rare mycelia set to natural (and unnatural) soundscapes.
As 900 high-definition photographs of mushroom spore prints play successively at the frequency of human breathing, two types of sounds fill the sonic space. Natural elements, organic life: birds, chickens, livestock, bees, wind, water, lightning, frogs, cicadas, the crying of newborn babies. These sounds are associated with the 300 wild mushroom spore prints I collected on the mountain slopes of Jizu Shan between April and October, 2021 and photographed in my studio in Dali.
The remaining 600 images of genetically-modified mushroom spore prints I paired with unnatural sounds: education, economics, science and technology, war, religion. These unnatural "voices" are metaphors for human greed, ugliness, ignorance. Together, the imagery and sounds represent the tenuous relationship between nature and human society.
Please enjoy Listening 2021.
Shandong-born painter, visual artist, and videographer who studied oil painting and copperplate engraving at Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing. She lives in an ancient stone home in the mountains of southwest China.
