Sympoiesis

14 x analogue collages, 29,7 x 42 cm, framed behind museumsglas

Animals, plants, fungi, microorganisms, and humans have always been connected, sustaining each other in multiple ways. About ninety percent of all plants live in partnerships with fungi – mycorrhizae, some of the finest networks of mutual aid. In water, too, countless organisms form sympoiesis (from sym- „together“ and poiesis „creation“), making survival possible and allowing species to flourish that could not exist alone. These relations form the basis for complex ecosystems and biodiversity. Donna Haraway developed the term Sympoiesis further, it describes systems that are produced through collective collaboration and interdependence. The scientist Lynn Margulis argued that it was not “survival of the fittest” but sympoiesis, mutualistic symbioses and symbiogenesis that propelled evolution: cooperating, sharing, helping – forces powerful enough to ensure survival and even give rise to new species.