Physarum polycephalum (P.p.) defies conventional categories. As a slime mold, it can function as either a unicellular or multicellular organism depending on the situation. Its ability to form non-hierarchical networks that are both adaptive and experience-based opens new perspectives on the nature of knowledge and memory. New experiences are stored, and past ones are recalled. The mythological dimension of the exhibition intertwines with the archetype of the witch and her magical familiar. According to 16th-century Scandinavian folklore, witches sold part of their soul to create a magical companion, often in the form of a hare. In a world where happiness was limited, it had to be taken from others in order to partake in it oneself. The hare, on the witch’s behalf, would steal the (milk) luck and regurgitate it as slime (P.p.) in moments of greed. These cultural narratives merge in Enya Burger’s final exhibition with contemporary scientific insights into the slime mold, creating starting points for reflections on epistemology. What connections between historical and contemporary perspectives become visible? The works on display operate at the intersection of scientific inquiry and mythological storytelling. P.p., with its resistance to simple classification, challenges conventional power structures in the production of knowledge. The embedded cultural narratives encourage us to question the boundaries of traditional perception.
Enya Burger (*1996, lives and works in Düsseldorf) completed her studies at the Düsseldorf Art Academy in 2024 in the class of Prof. Gregor Schneider. Prior to that, she studied with Prof. Marcel Odenbach, who appointed her as his master student. In 2024, Burger was awarded the 78th International Bergischen Kunstpreis.
Enya Burger’s interdisciplinary practice includes video art, immersive sculptures, and installations that deconstruct societal norms and power structures while establishing the concept of the female gaze. Influenced by the natural sciences and theoretical discourses, Burger critically engages with social issues and the global ideology of progress, bridging analog and digital realities. Drawing from her experience as a queer woman, Burger examines gender and technology, particularly in relation to digital inclusion and discriminatory practices within our digitized everyday lives and media consumption.