Metamorphosis (2020),
The Institute of Queer Ecology
Collective — US
Exhibition: Mutation
Wednesday 8 June till Sunday 19 June — Dokzaal
Opening | 17:00—23:00 (free admission)
Tue - Fri | 13:00—20:00
Sat & Sun | 10:00—20:00
Mon | closed
At times, it is hard to imagine that a constructive, healing relationship with the Earth is possible. But humanity, nature and society are in constant flux, mutating into ever-changing forms and transforming through mutual exchange. Taking inspiration from insects, The Institute of Queer Ecology (IQECO) imagines a new world, where we could transform our relationship with the planet and ourselves, creating an equal and sustainable future.
Metamorphosis is a 3-part video proposal to restructure how the world is imagined and how it operates today. These three stages are modelled after the life cycles of insects who undergo a “complete metamorphosis” where the organism fully restructures itself to adapt to its changing needs and ensure its survival. The film asserts that capitalism forces us into a kind of perpetual larval stage, an incessant need to consume and accumulate resources, in a way that resembles how caterpillars rapidly increase their weight ten-thousandfold in less than three weeks. When a caterpillar enters its cocoon, it releases enzymes that dissolve most of its bodily tissues, liquifying itself to be rebuilt. Liquidity, of course, has an economic association, referring to assets being made liquid in times of crisis, or growth.
Relying on the metaphorical transformation, IQECO aims to help catalyse a planet-wide transformation from the prevailing extractive relationship with the earth to one characterised by regeneration and care: a shift from making “nature” subservient, to working with the natural world and, in that process, remaking ourselves and our relationships—to each other, and the world.
The Institute of Queer Ecology (IQECO), is a collaborative, decentralized organism that works to imagine and realize an equitable multispecies future. With interdisciplinary programming that oscillates between curating exhibitions and directly producing artworks/projects, the Institute of Queer Ecology lays the groundwork for a (bio)diverse utopia.
Prelude: Serotiny (05:28 minutes)
Episode 1: Grub Economics (14:54 minutes)
Episode 2: Liquidation in the Pupal Stage (13:16 minutes)
Episode 3: Emergence (15:30 minutes)
Commissioned by DIS for release online at DIS.ART
PRODUCED BY The Institute of Queer Ecology
COMMISSIONED BY DIS
DIRECTOR & EDITOR
Lee Pivnik
NARRATOR (Prelude)
Danny Orlowski
NARRATOR (Episodes 1-3)
Mykki Blanco
SCORE & PRODUCTION
Jake Sillen
LEAD RESEARCHER
Nicolas Baird
LEAD WRITER
Micah Schippa
SCRIPT EDITORS
Allyson Church
Mika Rosenberg
GRAPHIC DESIGNER
Somnath Bhatt
ANIMATION & VFX
Milton Melvin Croissant III