MŸKIS

Occasionally, one stumbles into wonder….

A proliferation of mushrooms emerged around my Okanagan studio in 2018. I was struck by mycophilia – a love and wonder of mushrooms.

Just as mushroom mycorrhizae connect and nurture many species through the rhizospheres of forest ecosystems, the Mýkis series symbiotically connects many threads of my art. My practice and studies have taken place in many parts of the world and have addressed numerous themes. However, like far-reaching networks of mycelium, my practices and inspirations are intimately connected and mutually supportive.
 
Mycelia are the great collaborators of the forest floor: they interconnect surrounding plant species to communicate and share nutrients. Given the remarkable finding that mushrooms are humanity’s closest cellular relatives, it becomes understandable that mushrooms and humans should also be drawn to collaborative expression. Collaboration – including inter-species collaboration – is vital to the wellbeing of humanity and the Earth. We have much to learn from mushrooms as they detoxify soil, slowly and patiently shift concrete and stone, serve as medicine to our bodies and provide nutrients to plants and animals.

Few of the world’s mushroom species are known to science and their vast possibilities for artistic inspiration are uncharted. The works that make up Mýkis offer a meditation on the humble beauty, power and potential for inter-relationship that surrounds us.