BLURRING THE LINES
BLURRING THE LINES

Greta Windfuhr

Nachruf auf den Baum (Eulogy to the tree)

EDITION

2024, Shortlisted

school

Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

In the research for my graduation project and thesis I explore how art can foster a shift in humanity's relationship with nature through the lens of Object-Oriented Ontology (OOO). OOO, a philosophical framework developed by Graham Harman, posits that all entities—humans, trees, objects—possess equal ontological status, challenging the traditional human-centered worldview. This perspective rejects the anthropocentric view that treats nature merely as a resource for human use and instead advocates for a more equitable relationship where all entities are valued equally. I am critiquing the ways in which capitalist systems commodify nature, leading to widespread deforestation and environmental degradation. My research also examines how art can be a transformative tool in combating "plant blindness"—the tendency to overlook the importance of plants in our ecosystem. Through visual representation, art can influence public perception and promote a post-humanist understanding that respects all forms of life. Within my artworks and my thesis, I draw on personal experiences in the Black Forest and interviews with forest rangers to illustrate the complex challenges of managing forests, highlighting the tension between economic motivations and ecological protection. “Nachruf auf den Baum” pays tribute to the black forest and to all trees on this planet. With this project I want to archive a part of nature that will soon not exist anymore. The installation consists of five tree trunks with inserted lightboxes that light up night flash photographs of trees. The site resembles a graveyard where the tree trunks are the headstones which visualize the death of trees. Each lightbox turns off when the trunk is being touched. The photos are showing living standing trees with their branches as a contrast to the dead cut tree they are in. The tree trunks I am showing are all collected in the black forest on sites where the bark beetle forced rangers to cut down entire hectares of land. It is an ode to the trees that died, are dying and will die soon. This is an ode to all the trees that are with us today. And all the trees that never will be.    

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Greta Windfuhr

Nachruf auf den Baum (Eulogy to the tree)

EDITION

2024, Shortlisted

school

Willem de Kooning Academy, Rotterdam, The Netherlands

In the research for my graduation project and thesis I explore how art can foster a shift in humanity's relationship with nature through the lens of Object-Oriented Ontology (OOO). OOO, a philosophical framework developed by Graham Harman, posits that all entities—humans, trees, objects—possess equal ontological status, challenging the traditional human-centered worldview. This perspective rejects the anthropocentric view that treats nature merely as a resource for human use and instead advocates for a more equitable relationship where all entities are valued equally. I am critiquing the ways in which capitalist systems commodify nature, leading to widespread deforestation and environmental degradation. My research also examines how art can be a transformative tool in combating "plant blindness"—the tendency to overlook the importance of plants in our ecosystem. Through visual representation, art can influence public perception and promote a post-humanist understanding that respects all forms of life. Within my artworks and my thesis, I draw on personal experiences in the Black Forest and interviews with forest rangers to illustrate the complex challenges of managing forests, highlighting the tension between economic motivations and ecological protection. “Nachruf auf den Baum” pays tribute to the black forest and to all trees on this planet. With this project I want to archive a part of nature that will soon not exist anymore. The installation consists of five tree trunks with inserted lightboxes that light up night flash photographs of trees. The site resembles a graveyard where the tree trunks are the headstones which visualize the death of trees. Each lightbox turns off when the trunk is being touched. The photos are showing living standing trees with their branches as a contrast to the dead cut tree they are in. The tree trunks I am showing are all collected in the black forest on sites where the bark beetle forced rangers to cut down entire hectares of land. It is an ode to the trees that died, are dying and will die soon. This is an ode to all the trees that are with us today. And all the trees that never will be.    

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