Project by: Jessica Lin (Yun-jou)
Agar-agar, derived from red algae, is used to explore the artificial life cycle marine biological matter enters after human extraction. Once harvested, processed, heated, and molded, the material is removed from its natural ecosystem and transformed into an irreversible artificial state. The installation forms a speculative sculptural colony composed of mutated coral structures, organ-like bodies, larval sacs, seaweed networks, and fossilized waste growths, existing between marine biology, human anatomy, and contamination. Embedded with human waste materials such as crushed glass, eggshells, coffee grounds, plastic fragments, and ash, the work reflects how extracted ocean matter becomes permanently entangled with systems of consumption and pollution. As the agar dries, cracks, shrinks, and decays over time, the installation continues to transform throughout the exhibition, becoming a living record of extraction, mutation, and irreversible metamorphosis.
