Satu Miettinen, Amna Qureshi, Heidi Pietarinen, and Melanie Sarantou presented the installation “Co-authoring Identities and Bio Art” at the AMASS Symposium III, Final Event: A Critical Context: Issues that Matter, held at Corso Space, National Gallery, Prague, the Czech Republic, on November 24, 2022. The arts can unite people, facilitating connections among individuals and communities in various ways. While these connections can be complex, they can also be strong, as demonstrated by this collaboration during the COVID-19 pandemic. This exhibition explores the relationships that develop around people, nature, creativity, care, and self-expression. The textiles featured in the exhibition raise questions about our identities and experiences, shaped by our environments and the people we encounter. Embracing diversity allows us to learn about our shared benefits and history. By connecting with nature, we become part of it. Perhaps history teaches us to face today’s challenges, while nature encourages us to care for all living things.

The exhibition showcases the results of partnerships among four artist-researchers who specialise in digital bio art and collaborate with non-human entities. These partnerships inspire innovative artistic methods and the use of materials that help us uncover hidden potentials in our surroundings. They also encourage fresh, environmentally friendly, and inclusive approaches to co-creation. Additionally, the exhibition examines the relationships and distinctions between the artists and their subjects through a variety of sensory experiences.

Textile installation at Corso Space, National Gallery, Trade Fair Palace in the Czech Republic in 2022 and at Lange Zaal, Antwerp in Belgium in 2022.

Related research: Qureshi, A., Sarantou, M., Pietarinen, H.,and Miettinen, S.(2023) Spatial Entanglements from South to North, in Tincuta Heinzel, Delia Dumitrescu, Oscar Tomico, Sara Robertson (eds.), Proceedings of Textile Intersections Conference 2023, 20 – 23 September, London, United Kingdom. https://doi.org/10.21606/TI-2023/104