Biologically altered prints, 30x40 cm, 2022–2025

The work reflects on the forms and representations of energy. The representation of the Sun, which makes life on Earth possible, is compared with the technical imitation of the processes within it. In doing so, it reflects on microscopic and macroscopic processes and connections. Biological image creation is combined with on-site research in and around the experimental nuclear fusion reactors.

Close-up images of the Sun* were altered by a randomly discovered experimental process. The surface of the image was brought into contact with microorganisms from human saliva mixed with an energy source such as yogurt or banana. This triggered an organic process on the image surface in which life continued to evolve for up to ten months. Once the shapes stopped changing, the microorganisms had used up all the available energy, died, and left behind a visual trace. In order to zoom in on the morphological complexity, this process was further examined using a scanning electron microscope (SEM).

The biological images were supplemented by research into technical energy possibilities and their visibility or invisibility. Images from the the experimental fusion reactor Wendelstein 7-X in Greifswald are combined with images from the outskirts of the ITER site in Cadarache, southern France. These two facilities are the most important centers for nuclear fusion research. Nuclear fusion is the process that takes place inside the Sun and other stars, supplying them with energy.

The project arose from an interest in the tension between natural and technical structures, and the hopes projected onto such technologies. Analog black-and-white photography refers to an older model of technological representation from a time when the idea of artificial nuclear fusion was born. The contrast arises from the switching between microscopic and macroscopic; between landscape, unpredictable biological forms, and technology.

* Images from the NASA Public Domain and by Paul Stewart (CC BY 2.0)