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Anicka Yi De-Gestalt Yourself, 2022
Cherry wood, teak oil, resin, acrylic paint
127 x 101,6 x 14 cm
The work belongs to Anicka Yi's series of works known as Mid-Century Panels. Combining warm wood varieties carved into stark geometric designs, the "mid-century" vocabulary is then interrupted by a 3D-printed fungal lattice pattern. The fungal lattice is inspired by the veiled lady mushroom and is a longstanding motif in Yi’s work, dating back to her 2016 installation When Species Meet at Fridericianum, Kassel. Yi’s original interest in fungi sprouted from their profound psychological and physiological effects, causing intense hallucinations as with psilocybin, or reducing memory loss as with lion's mane.
In this series, the organic undulating form of the fungal lattice serves as both a visual and conceptual play against the simple, clean-lined aesthetics that were favored in the Mid-Century Modern design movement. The playful combination of mushrooms and woods such as teak, walnut, and cherry is a nod to mycorrhizae, hybrid associations of fungi and plant roots. The fungal networks that allow trees to communicate and transfer nutrients underground have been referred to as the “wood wide web” and are essential to forest ecosystems.