Alice in Wasteland — Alexandra Rodriguez

In light of the International Year of Soils (2015), Alice in Wasteland: An Adventure in the Depths of Soil is a multidisciplinary art exhibition aiming to introduce urban consumers to soil, industrial agriculture and permaculture. Inspired by Lewis Carroll's book Alice in Wonderland, the project connected performance, photography and sculpture in the desire to emphasize the value of soil.

The exhibition took place at the Concordia University Greenhouse in April of 2015 and was developed in the context of an undergraduate directed study, which is a graduating course requiring intensive research and the creation of a project. The exhibition space was divided into three rooms, corresponding respectively to these subjects: soil, industrial agriculture and permaculture. Each room hosted Alexandra’s artistic creations and contained an informative poster about its subject.

Down the rabbit hole.

The story Alice in Wonderland was used to create parallels between Alice’s adventures and the audience’s discoveries of our underground world. To follow the metaphor, each art piece was accompanied by an excerpt of the book.

THE SOIL ROOM

This introductory room hosted Dark Matter, a series of microscopic photographs of soil. The piece alluded to the shrinking of Alice, which provided her with a new perspective on everyday things.

Dark Matter

Book excerpt: “And so it was indeed: she was now only ten inches high, and her face brightened up at the thought that she was now the right size for going through the little door into that lovely garden.”

THE INDUSTRIAL AGRICULTURE ROOM

This room gathered the pieces that related to industrial agriculture and its harmful impacts on soil.

The first piece, Poisonous Solutions, was inspired by the bottles Alice finds throughout the story, and makes reference to the damaging effects of synthetic pesticides, insecticides and fertilizers commonly used in industrial agriculture.

Influenced by Alice's uncontrollable growing inside the rabbit's house, Food Giant represents giant food corporations and their reckless behavior towards natural resources, including soil.

Finally, the common appearances of mushrooms in the book gave birth to Fungus Monosculpture, which alludes to monoculture, one of the most harmful practices for the soil ecosystem.

Poisonous Solutions

Book excerpt: "...this time she found a little bottle on it (‘which certainly was not here before,’ said Alice), and tied round the neck of the bottle was a paper label, with the words “DRINK ME” beautifully printed on it in large letters.”

Food Giant

Book excerpt: “Still she went on growing, and as a last resource, she put one arm out of the window and one foot up the chimney...”

Fungus Monosculpture

Book excerpt: "There was a large mushroom growing near her, about the same height as herself; and, when she had looked under it, and on both sides of it, and behind it, it occurred to her that she might as well look and see what was on top of it.”

THE PERMACULTURE ROOM

Biodiversity - Alice's Garden, stemmed from the desire to reconnect with the process of growing plants and the value of our food. The following edibles were planted at home, nurtured as seedlings, and then transplanted to a garden: tomatoes, beans, carrots, beets, radish, garlic, coriander, spinach, Swiss chard and mushrooms. As a whole, the green room created a metaphorical parallel between Alice’s paradisiac garden, permaculture and the advantages of biodiversity.

Biodiversity - Alice's Garden

Book excerpt: “Then she set to work nibbling at the mushroom (she had kept a piece of it in her pocket) till she was about a foot high: then she walked down the little passage: and then ⎯ she found herself at last in the beautiful garden, among the bright flower beds and the cool fountains.”

Growing edible plants at home

Growing mushrooms at home

One of the highlights of this project is the performance Organic Alchemy, which took place as the opening act for the exhibition. This vibrant performance consisted of using fruits and vegetables as acoustic and electronic musical instruments.

Interested in more juicy music? Check out Organic Alchemy.

Before the performance

Making carrot flutes

Setting up the electric circuit

Acoustic instruments

Carrots, watermelons and pumpkins

The Performance

The Organic Alchemists

One of the main goals of this exhibition was to bring members of the Montreal community together and create links with interesting places that offer alternative products, services, activities and learning opportunities. This was possible thanks to the sponsors that supported this project: Concordia Greenhouse, Eco Loco, Compost Montreal, Miracle Farms, Les Jardins de la Montagne, Urban Seedling and Sustainable Concordia.

This project was about creating magical moments that sparked informed conversations. It was about encouraging the blooming of conscious minds that appreciate soil as a living universe crucial for our survival. It was not about finding the perfect solution, but about motivating the beginning of both a personal and communal quest for living habits that work in harmony with our ecosystem.

To mother earth, wise giver of life.