IMORTHUFORA

Installation, Audiowalk, Institute
Bones, Field Recording, Lab Coat
Time: 2022

Exhibition view, Goldsmiths Fine Art Degree Show, Goldsmiths College, University of London, 2022

Many centuries have passed and the pile of bones on the ground of the Thames is growing faster than ever before. The pavement beside the river is punctured by little chicken bones. The pace of industrialised death in the 21st century is speeding up the growth of a sleeping creature on the riverbed.

This installation aims to subvert the conventions of art, science and museum curation in an effort to raise awareness about animal rights and resistance. An audio guide, a lab coat, and other props bring to life a fictional institute: The Institute of More-than-Human Forensic Archaeology. The institute challenges traditional museological practices and their failure to properly acknowledge the loss of animal lives, particularly domesticated animals. Bones of farmed animals, recovered from the bed of the river Thames, are arranged horizontally in the space. Synthesized animal voices tell a story of violence and resistance. A medieval-inspired monster from the Thames haunts the city and its interspecies atrocities. Review by Will Jennings @ recessed.space