Rain Wu

From Strata of Memory to Layers of Rock,  2018

Fondation Thalie, Brussels (BE)

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Collaboration with Ralf Pflugfelder
Photographs by Su Yu Hsin

 Man’s vision of nature is forever loaded with memories, myths, and meanings. Nature and human perception have for the longest time been indivisible. This stands in stark contrast to the imbalance if not near breakdown of the relationship between man and nature.

From Strata of Memory to Layers of Rock is an ongoing research project by RARA (Rain Wu & Ralf Pflugfelder) looking into the psychic and emotional claims that human beings and their societies have made on nature, and vice versa. As uninhibited amateur-archeologists they were searching for traces of a more archaic, balanced relationship between man and nature. They were employing a proto-scientific working method, an alchemy of sorts which, despite its flaws and made-up science, may hint at a more holistic outlook.
     
Fondation Thalie housed the first instalment in RARA’s ongoing series of enigmatic landscapes containing manifold objects and installations, follies and riddles - sites of wonder and contemplation. This first testbed was played out in a specifically conceived temple-like setup, activated through rituals and unveilings.