Bio-Présence

Bio-Présence
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Bio-Présence
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The Biopresence project began with the destiny of Biscarosse's elm trees, which is indeed the story of all the elms of France, which the so- called "elm disease" has practically wiped from the French countryside. This obliteration has diminished an entire traditional ecosystem and has led to a proliferation of tree species which are poorer or even detrimental to the environment.

The artwork is in the form of a protective crown, made up of a half-ring horizontally divided into three parts: its middle represents the trunk, the two surrounding parts are like the leaves and flowers of the elm. Towards the edges, the elm's leaves are replaced by less noble vegetation, incapable of reconstructing the former ecosystem, which has taken its place. In the middle of the "crown", the elm returns, living, taking back the place which has been its own for centuries. It's a new variety of elm, one that's been developed by specialists of the INRA
– esthetically very close to that of Biscarosse – which is capable of resisting the devastating disease, and which becomes the central element, in both a physical and conceptual sense, of this art piece.

Working in collaboration with the INRIA team of biologists, we perfected a system for integrating a fragment of a deceased relation's DNA into that of a tree. The tree was then planted, and became a sort of living memorial. This aspect reflects the nature of the Biscarosse elm and its ties to the inhabitants of the town, for whom the tree is the perceptible trace that unites them to their roots and to their history.