On Saturday, October 17, the doors of The Symbiocene Forest – Roots opened to the general public. Central to the exhibition was the idea of The Symbiocene Forest as an interconnected system, in which the “roots” symbolized the connections that shape us — whether through our biological origins, cultural heritage, industrial history, and/or philosophical foundations. More than 80 talents presented their work to a broad audience, ranging from artworks and installations to experiences and workshops. These included unique experiences such as Studio Berkveld’s Perlijn – How a Pod Taught the Earth to Listen; ongoing research projects such as the bioglitter SeaSpark by Xu Ben Zhang, Poorva Shrivastava, and Karlijn Besse; biomaterial applications such as edible packaging An Edible Mission. More than Packaging by Andrea Brittnek DLA and Kata Lagzi; and thought-provoking artworks such as Vitae Vestigia – Traces of Life by Clair Tompkins and Back to Future Palestine by MaryAnn Jaraisy. In addition, the collective exhibition Radical Empathy – In Your Shoes by Studio TurnAround (Design Academy Eindhoven), co-curated with Shaakira Jassat, was presented. In this exhibition, designers are challenged to step beyond their own umwelt and engage with the non-human experience of another living being.

BioArt Laboratories offered its visitors multiple moments of stillness, encounter, and reflection throughout the programme. In particular, the campfire gatherings — such as New Moon Poetry and Tea and the closing Roots & Routes debate — created intimate settings in which calm, dialogue, and collective experience took centre stage. In addition, participatory installations and experiences such as Dear Stranger, Echoes of Memory, Not Just an Egg, and Welcome to the Living Room functioned as accessible spaces for personal reflection and human connection. Workshops including Cubcho, Soil Recipe, Forest Design Workshop — Reconnect · Rethink · Redesign, and Hair Recycling Workshop, as well as guided tours, also contributed to these “moments of relief” by actively engaging visitors and guiding them through the content in an accessible and approachable way.

As the sun sets at BioArt Laboratories on the 26th of October, we look back at a successful week with ‘The Symbiocene Forest – Roots’. Many visitors viewed the works in wonder, listened attentively to the artists while reflecting on themselves within the Symbiocene. The Brabant, farm-like appearance of the monumental bunkers complimented the nature-rich surroundings, the warm weather, the many artworks and activities on site, creating a rustic and inviting atmosphere for our visitors. The above mentioned creations and activities are just a small sample, and you can read up on these and many more on our website.