ursula damm
greenhouse converter, 2008
Cybernetic-model, consisting of waterfleas (daphnia magna), algues (Hydrodictyonreticulatum, volvoxglobator), LEDs with changing colours; pump, monitor, camera, waterfountain
Water enriched with atmospheric gases, especially carbon dioxide, is pumped from a fountain via an air supply into an aquarium. This aerated water feeds an algal culture which –influenced by light– produces biomass and oxygen from the carbon dioxide. The blue light in the aquarium reads as the word “beloved”, which is a reference to the endosymbiosis theories of Lynn Margulis. The water fleas eat the algae adhering to the display. The word therefore remains visible. If the algae growth is excessive though, the ecological balance is likely to tip over. The legibility of the word “beloved” serves then as the index of this little ecosystem’s state or rather of its relationship with the greater external biosphere.