If all minerals are extracted from the soil, will the flowers ever bloom again?
At the event Restoring Global Memories & Local Ecologies: Metallophyte plants and colonial history in DR Congo mining at CApE on March 6, Semine Long-Callesen wrote an article about the work of artist Toshie Takeuchi and professor Edouard Ilunga Wa Ilunga, which is now in published in the online media Resilience.
If all minerals are extracted from the soil, will the flowers ever bloom again?
“Takeuchi’s quest takes her to the Shinkolobwe mine, a now-closed facility that is situated in Katanga, the region in the Democratic Republic of Congo that holds the world’s richest ores of copper, cobalt and uranium.
In Congo, her work flows together with her colleague Professor Ilunga wa Ilunga whose work revolves around metallophytes — plants that thrive in rich mineral soil. Historically, plants have been used by locals to identify mineral deposits, as they mirror the layers of richness the soil holds.”
The article has also been published in Danish in Føljeton