Curatorial Work → Stages of Decay
Stages of Decay explores perceptions of natural life and decay through three interconnected phases, unfolding at 11Atelier, Frederiksberg. A collaboration between artist Roe Ly and me, inviting audiences to reflect on transformation, perception, and the fine line between preservation and deterioration, culminating in a gala event at Villa Kultur, Copenhagen, in March 2023.
Stages of Decay, 1st exhibition phase. Photo: Karoline Ellekær Bisgaard.
A multitude of colors is seemingly hovering in thin air in the window of 11Atelier. Behind layers of latex, paint, and glue, apples are slowly decaying. Do you see a bad apple?
Stages of Decay, 2nd exhibition phase. Photo: Karoline Ellekær Bisgaard.
A feisty fruit boldly declared, "I’m NOT a cherry, I’m an APPLE!" — a playful reminder that perspective and self-definition matter.
At first glance, one might mistake it for a cherry. But on closer inspection, its punctuated shape and subtle wrinkles reveal something else entirely. In fact, it’s a different kind of fruit — an apple that, despite its small size, has held significance since ancient times. The paradise apple is the most widely cultivated tree fruit in the world. Yet, despite its global presence, wild populations are in decline. Like so many other fruits and vegetables, it is now primarily grown to meet economic demands for a specific, idealised appearance.
Stages of Decay, 3rd exhibition phase. Photo: Karoline Ellekær Bisgaard.
The final stage immortalised the entire family of altered fruits and vegetables in a photographic take on the still life genre, challenging our notions of beauty and impermanence.
At the center of the table sits a spotted pumpkin, flanked by fruits and vegetables in various stages of decay. Their colors, sizes, and textures tell a story of transformation—some surfaces remain smooth, while others curl and crumple, echoing the folds of the draped satin backdrop.
Gala Decay at Villa Kultur. Photo: Karoline Ellekær Bisgaard.
The exhibition was on display between November 2022 to March 2023. For the closing event at Villa Kultur, we wanted to awaken the still life. With the help of Foodsharing Copenhagen, we sourced discarded fruits and vegetables, giving them a new purpose as part of the evening’s installation.
At the heart of the event was a performance: artist Roe Ly carefully cut out "moldy artworks" on the audience’s plates, while I spoke about the deeper themes behind Stages of Decay—abundance, impermanence, and our ever-shifting relationship with nature. After the performance, the audience was encouraged to touch, play with, and reshape the installation as they pleased, and DJ Double Trouble played for the occasion.
Excerpt from my speech at the performance during Gala Decay:
There was a time when pineapples were so rare in the Western world that they were rented for parties—extravagant props meant to impress guests and signal social status. Today, we can buy fruit and vegetables from across the globe at any supermarket—a luxury so normalised that we barely notice it.
Still life painting, which flourished in the Netherlands during the Renaissance and Baroque periods, captures a similar tension between abundance and impermanence. In the Dutch Republic—the first nation to amass extreme wealth through trade and colonisation—oversupply became both a triumph and a concern, often reflected in art.
These still lifes showcased exotic fruits, imported flowers, and luxury objects from the colonies, celebrating national power and prosperity. Yet many also included vanitas motifs—wilting blooms, half-peeled lemons, rotting food—quiet reminders of beauty’s fragility and life’s inevitable decay. They were at once displays of wealth and subtle critiques of ambition and dominance.
Stages of Decay draws on this legacy to explore the complicated, and often problematic, relationship between humans and nature. How do we intervene in, preserve, and even define what is considered "natural"?