Thinker Maker Space (TMS) of CYENS is pleased to be hosting the exhibition καίω (burn) that features the work developed by Nemo Nonnenmacher.
During the 3 months of his residency at Thinker Maker Space, Nemo has been exploring the materiality of remnants collected from areas that were devastated by wildfires. The work reflects on the personal experience through the sense of touch and develops a new tactility through digital tools. Charred bark becomes a sculptural object and is digitalised in a VR Environment and interactive video installation. Through processes of transformation, καίω draws on the emotional reaction to physicality and the implications of remote interconnectivity through new technologies and media.
A few years ago, I witnessed being close to a wildfire for the first time in my life. I had just relocated from London to Greece, and my studio was on the west side of the mountains in the Peloponnese at the time.
The closest fire was two kilometres away. I then realised that these catastrophes happen every year all around the Mediterranean. A few weeks later I visited sites of past fires, which are further south as you drive through the mountains. Seeing the landscapes where the fires had raged was a striking and uncanny experience, both visually and emotionally. It made me aware of the changing climate – in a very immediate way, as well as the reasons behind some fires being started purposefully, for economic gain.
Having grown up in Germany and having developed a Western-European perspective on these issues; I was reminded that catastrophes like this are usually only mediated through news, media and the remoteness of a screen – at least for a western audience.
I started collecting material from forests near where we live: Vasilikis Forest, one of the oldest forests in Greece. I gathered charred pieces of bark and burned wood, took videos and pictures to generate some initial 3D models from. Whilst driving through some of the previous sites, I filmed and photographed slowly recovering plants and trees, burnt vegetation – a picture for the 4 million square kilometres of wildfires that happen around the globe every year.
During the artist residency in Cyprus in 2022, I delved into the materiality of charred bark and other remnants collected from these wildfire-devastated areas, resulting in “kaio (burn),” an exhibition that merged sculpture, installation, virtual reality, and live video.
The experience of these physical works, which I developed from the charred surfaces of burnt tree bark and wooden remnants, formed the centrepiece for two video and VR works that focused on the remote character of how these spaces and materials are usually experienced.
I have since continued to work with burnt materials as a starting point, as well as exploring wooden surfaces and laser-treated elements.
