BACTERIA ALSO SPEAKS EUSKARA
Yes, for three months, from November 29, 2022, to February 26, 2023, the bacteria we have been cultivating and caring for in our studio for over five months will be “speaking” in Euskara. They have traveled to Bilbao to settle in Azkuna Zentroa as part of the exhibition “Zientzia Frikzioa. Bizitza espezie lagunen artean” (Science Friction: Life Among Companion Species).
SCIENCE FRICTION: LIFE AMONG COMPANION SPECIES
There, they are sure to feel right at home, surrounded by works from artists such as Petra Maitz, Susana Talayuelo, Ernesto Casero, Shoshanah Dubiner, and Diana Toucedo, among others, as well as scientific institutions like Aranzadi Zientzia Elkartea and the Elgoibar Museum of Fossils and Minerals (Mufomi).
The exhibition, a co-production of Azkuna Zentroa and the Centre de Cultura Contemporània de Barcelona (CCCB), was previously showcased in 2021 at the CCCB under the title “Ciència Fricció. Vida entre espècies companyes.” Now, with some adaptations to fit the new exhibition space, it has arrived at Bilbao’s former Alhóndiga.
And there they are—our three Winogradsky columns and a small piece of microbial mat from the Ebro Delta—serving as introductory elements to the work and theories of the American biologist Lynn Margulis (1938–2011). She can also be seen and heard through excerpts from John Feldman’s film “Symbiotic Earth: How Lynn Margulis Rocked the Boat and Started a Scientific Revolution,” in which we had the pleasure of collaborating. These excerpts are displayed on a screen next to “our bacteria.”
Ana and Iker (Science into Images)
After the CCCB exhibition opening in 2021, I wrote a blog post about it (you can read it HERE), but I felt like writing about it again—not just because it is now in Bilbao but especially to highlight the dedication and effort of the team that welcomed us with open arms and took special care of both our bacteria and the Science into Images team members who traveled to Bilbao (Ana, Iker, and myself).
Maintaining living organisms in an exhibition of this nature is no easy task—especially because the transfer from our studio to Azkuna Zentroa is difficult and stressful, particularly for the microbial mat. However, both María Ptqk (the exhibition curator) and the Azkuna Zentroa team—especially Marina Urrutikoetxea (Cultural Programming and Education Technician), Rakel Esparza (Head of Cultural Programming), Iraia Olea (Cultural Programming Administrative), and Olaia Ibarzabal (Cultural Production Technician)—have given us their full support and care (as well as to our tiny creatures).
In my previous blog post after the CCCB inauguration, I highlighted the figure of Josep Querol, whom we affectionately nicknamed “the microbiologist resurrector.” This time, I want to recognize Olaia Ibarzabal, who could also be given that same honorary title. She has been, is, and will be the “nanny” of our bacteria for as long as they remain at Azkuna. And who knows—she might even teach them to speak Euskara!
Lynn Margulis, in one of her lectures, while discussing the fact that bacteria evolved just fine without us and will continue evolving just as well once we are gone, showed images of bacteria “dancing and singing” to Viola Wills’ song “Gonna Get Along Without You Now.” She even translated what the bacteria were saying so the audience could understand them. Perhaps, at some point, Olaia will also translate for the exhibition visitors what our bacteria are telling us: “Zu gabe jarraituko dugu” (We will continue without you).
If you want to watch the exhibition presentation from November 29, HERE is the link to the video published by Azkuna Zentroa.
