PLASTIVORE
From Oliver Kellhammer (Homo sapiens) and a colony of superworms (Zophobas morio) (CA)
Styrofoam (expanded polystyrene) is a difficult-to-recycle component of the global waste stream, and a major element of both marine and terrestrial pollution. The common mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) and the Superworm (Zophobas morio) have the amazing ability to biodegrade styrofoam via symbiotic organisms in their gut, depolymerizing the plastic and turning it into compost. Plastivore showcases examples of partially degraded styrofoam objects the worms have been eaten through. The artist finds them reminiscent of the Scholar’s Rocks that have long been celebrated in China and Japan as objects of contemplation in formal gardens and temples.
BIO
Oliver is an independent artist, writer and researcher, who seeks, through his botanical interventions and social art practice, to demonstrate nature’s surprising ability to recover from damage. His recent work has focused on the psychosocial effects of climate change, cleaning up contaminated soils, reintroducing prehistoric trees to landscape damaged by industrial logging and cataloging the ecology of brownfield ecologies. He currently works as a lecturer in sustainable systems at Parsons School of Design in New York City.