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As early as 1985, Donna Haraway described in her essay A Cyborg Manifesto how the fusion of machines and living organisms not only produces hybrids, but also the superimposition of social realities and fiction. Human cyborg existence begins with the first items of clothing. It is the moment of origin when humans began to detach themselves from their own environment. Von Bismarck transfers this moment to plants and stages cyborg landscapes that use the progressive technologisation of our environment as a moment of social reflection.
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We Were All Naked (Red Elephant Ear), 2023Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta147 x 220 cm | Edition of 4 + 2 A.P.110 x 166 cm | Edition of 6 + 2 A.P.
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We Were All Naked (Elephant Ear), 2023Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta220 x 147 cm | Edition of 4 + 2 A.P.166 x 110 cm | Edition of 6 + 2 A.P.
In this series, von Bismarck confronts us with the fact that it is often impossible for non-human beings to adapt quickly enough to the conditions of their environment, changing due to human technologisation. We humans are able to isolate ourselves from our environment, while most other living things perish when they are removed from their ecosystems. The photo series was created in Madagascar, one of earth’s biodiversity hotspots. Analogous to vacuum-packed produce, the artist here wraps living plants in plastic and vacuum-packs them. Indeed, this deprives them of the air they need to breathe. The plants are preserved in their present state and inevitably die. At the same time, the shiny plastic film mirrors our inability to preserve our own environment.
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We Were All Naked (Black Monkey-Thorn), 2023Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta220 x 147 cm | Edition of 4 + 2 A.P.166 x 110 cm | Edition of 6 + 2 A.P.
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We Were All Naked (Traveller's Tree), 2023Archival pigment print on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Baryta220 x 147 cm | Edition of 4 + 2 A.P.166 x 110 cm | Edition of 6 + 2 A.P.
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SPARK 2024: Julius von Bismarck
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