We are thrilled to welcome Cristina Mariani, Skaftfells artist in residence in April and May. Mariani’s current research is focused on the perception of soil and rocks as immutable and inert entities, according to Mans time what modifies slowly is considered immobile.
Mariani works primarily with textile, but recently began investigating bioplastic, her initial goal was to produce a bio yarn made of soil, then she moved towards the creation of an elastic surface that would not require any thread or weaving structure. Despite being a relatively new material, bioplastic samples are actually older than most equipments and electronic objects that fill our daily life: we are surrounded by planned obsolescence. Marianis work poses several questions:
Is the duration of an artwork relevant in the age of climate change?
Or is in fact the precarious element the true expression of our time?
She wants to create an intersection of different times: the geological time of rocks in their entirety, their disintegrated form as soil and the bioplastics.
