POLONCA LOVŠIN / We Miss the Forest for the Trees, 2021
PRESENTING THE EKO 8 ART PROJECTS
POLONCA LOVŠIN / We Miss the Forest for the Trees, 2021
series of five collages, collage no. 1, paper on wood panel, 250 x 500 cm
courtesy of the artist
The forest is more than just a collection of trees, it is an oxygen producing factory, a water purifier, a habitat for different species of animals and plants, as well as an extension of our living rooms. In Slovenia, 60% of the land is covered by forest, so we take it for granted. We can learn a lot from the forest; about connectivity, interdependence, stability. A good example is the collective stability that occurs in a forest when the treetops touch. Trees are more resilient in groups than individually.
We Miss the Forest for the Trees is a series of collages that tackles the complex subject of the forest in the perspective of climate change. The collages link local stories from Slovenian forests to global forest-related events, to the forest's hitherto known functions and new roles manifested in the changing climatic conditions. Incorporated in the images and the legends are facts, statistics, legislation, daily newspaper articles, and people's opinions.
The collages on display are based on the artist's research into the forest, which she has been conducting in the form of walks, readings, and live dialogue since 2019, together with philosopher Mateja Kurir and art historian and sociologist of culture Urška Jurman.
Polonca Lovšin is an architect and artist. She graduated from the Faculty of Architecture (1996) and the Academy of Fine Arts (2001), where she also completed her postgraduate studies (2005). In 2015, she completed her PhD in Visual Arts at the Bauhaus University in Weimar. Her work comprises ideas of self-organisation and the search for alternative solutions for human habitation and action in the perspective of climate change. She has participated in numerous solo and group exhibitions at home and abroad and has completed artist residencies across Europe and the US. She works with Stefan Doepner, Urška Jurman, and Apolonia Šušteršič within KUD Obrat (Obrat Culture and Art Association). Their most recognisable project is the community-based garden Beyond a Construction Site (Ljubljana, 2010 – ongoing), which they created together with the residents of the Tabor neighbourhood in Ljubljana.
