HACK THE PANKE Festival

Art Laboratory Berlin welcomes you to participate in the HACK THE PANKE Festival with various events like workshops, film screenings and walks on art, science and sound in Berlin-Wedding.

In our last event of the festival, a conversational walk along the river Panke, we will focus on artistic and scientific research on symbiosis. Artist Saša Spačal will introduce us into her artistic research about symbiosis and interspecies entanglements. She has developed technological interfaces and relations with organic and mineral soil agents, addressing the posthuman condition that involves mechanical, digital and organic logic within biopolitics and necropolitics of our times. Ecologist Matthias Rillig will give us an insight into his research on soil and plant ecologies especially on the symbiosis of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi with plants and its effects on soil aggregation. In October and November 2022 Spačal will realize an art residency at the Rillig Lab at Freie Universität Berlin, curatorially accompanied by Art Laboratory Berlin.

Saša Spačal, photo: Tadej Čauševič

Saša Spačal: Symbiome, biotechnological installation, photo: Miha Godec

Exploring botanical gardens, imaging greenhouse diaries, photo: Saša Spačal

Matthias Rillig, professor of ecology, Freie Universität Berlin, leading the Plant Ecology lab.

Rillig lab, Freie Universität Berlin

Rillig lab, Freie Universität Berlin

Saša Spačal is an artist working at the intersection of living systems research, contemporary and sound art. Her artistic research focuses on the development of technological interfaces and relations with organic and mineral soil agents while trying to address the posthuman situation, that involves mechanical, digital and organic logic within contemporary biopolitics and necropolitics. Her work was internationally exhibited, awarded and performed at, to name only a few, Ars Electronica Festival (AT), Transmediale Festival (DE), Perm Museum of Contemporary Art (RUS), Onassis Cultural Center Athens (GR), Chronos Art Center (CHN), Kapelica Gallery (SI), Art Laboratory Berlin (D). In October and November 2022 Spačal will do artistic research at the Rillig Lab, curatorially accompanied by Art Laboratory Berlin.
www.agapea.si

Matthias Rillig is a professor of ecology at Freie Universität Berlin, where he leads the Plant Ecology lab. His research is concerned with terrestrial ecosystems, and in particular with soil biodiversity and effects of global change on soils. Most work is done with fungi, including saprobic fungi and also arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (which are symbiotic with plant roots).
https://rilliglab.org/