Liz Larner, the renowned Californian artist, has turned to a strange material in her quest for new dimensions of art: breath. In her project titled "Every Artist Gave a Breath," she invited artists from around the world to breathe on petri dishes, thus creating artistic works from respiratory bacteria. This work began in 1988 and is now being displayed in various transformed exhibitions.
An Experience with Bacteria
Larner's works are continuously evolving. Some bacteria have taken the form of "beautiful, dry wafers," while others have transformed into a "dark green and dirty" and somewhat frightening appearance. These changes reflect the contemporary world and the tensions within it.
Liz Larner is interested in the scent and essence of human life and the unconventional materials she uses in her works. In her first major exhibition in the UK, titled "Hard Line for Curvature," she transformed single-use plastics into captivating and dangerous works. She began considering the use of these materials after China stopped accepting American plastics.
Environmental Challenges
Larner states: "When I was living in Los Angeles, I realized where our plastics were going, and this led me to bring them into my studio. The volume became so large that I had to hang it from the ceiling." These works not only refer to visual beauty but also address environmental challenges and the necessity of paying attention to plastic waste in everyday life.
Considering Larner's works, it can be said that breath and breathing as art are not only tools for expressing creativity but also reflect global and environmental challenges. Can breath be art? It seems Liz Larner answers this question with her works.
