My intention was to create a biological work to depict but also contribute to my self-healing process. To do so, I chose significant people in my life with whom I am missing closure. I addressed each of them in letter, saying the thoughts I’ve held inside for so long. However, these letters were never to be be sent, nor read by whom they were addressed. Instead, these letters became the biological material from which I’d grow mushrooms. In order to grow the mushrooms would feed on my letters, in turn breaking them down. At the same time however, it was creating something new.
What is mycelium?
Mycelium is the vegetative body for fungi that produce mushrooms and, in some cases, species of fungi that never produce a mushroom. It extends the area in which a fungi can find nutrients. Fungi are stationary organisms; however, mycelium grow outwards to look for water and nutrients such as nitrogen, carbon, potassium and phosphorus, which the mycelium transports to the fruiting body so it can continue to produce biomass and grow.
Biology plays parallel roles in this piece – both conceptually and physically. For one, this piece focuses largely on the aspect of letting go. Through the process of me writing onto the paper, which will then be decomposed, the original object is given new life through, in a sense, death. The biological decomposition and resulting growth being performed by the mushroom is essential to the piece. It is reclaiming emotional and biological autonomy by breaking down what is limiting to create something fresh. My own process of writing out my troubled thoughts allows them to decompose the same way the mushroom literally does to the paper that is giving it life. I need to break down my past in order to recreate a stronger, healthier, more purposeful future.