Materials: Red Reishi Mycelium + Fruiting Bodies, Hardwood chips, Sand, Machined Black Walnut, Indigo Dyed Cotton
This trio of entities, red reishi mycelium and their fruiting bodies, were stewarded in their growth process by Rusk in a level 1 lab environment.
In their months of development, Rusk reflected on their daily changes, responses to their environment, and the beauty of their evolution.
Each body rests on a bed of sand, nestled within a Computer Numerical Control routed bed of walnut. The sand provides a soft landing, while the drawn ripples in its surface reflect the tool marks left behind by the CNC machine. The radiating pathways of the CNC router amplify the undeniable synchronicity living beings have with one another.
Each hardwood bed is made to conform to the shape of its mycelium partner.
These relationships explore the beauty in abstraction of nature, while highlighting the cyclical journey of life. As felled wood decomposes, it decays and new life is born through fungal filaments.
One life calls to another, and transformation is honored in this infinite moment. Resonance draws attention to our nonhuman collaborators, the deep entanglement of human impact on existing ecosystems, and the simulated methods we have developed to perpetuate their existence.
Baltimore, MD 04–15–2025