Tree and Soil

To shorten the time until the reopening, we would like to invite you to our online exhibition Tree and Soil by Antoinette de Jong and Robert Knoth. Hear how the artist duo experienced their travels to Fukushima, after the nuclear disaster, and learn more about the slow transformation of nature in impressive images.

"Very often people see themselves as separate from nature but we are very much part of it. And this is one of the key points of this exhibition. "

Antoinette de Jong

TREE and SOIL

The Dutch artist duo Antoinette de Jong & Robert Knoth photograph and film the natural environment surrounding Fukushima, Japan, in the wake of the nuclear disaster. Ten years ago, considerable amounts of radioactive material were released there from the damaged nuclear power plant following a tsunami. The works entitled Tree and Soil illustrate in stunning images how the environment has slowly changed and evolved over the years. The exhibition at the KUNST HAUS WIEN Garage features photographic works, a video installation, interviews, and illustrations.

"The exhibition Tree and Soil is basically about a sense of place, a sense of belonging, a place of home."

The artists were inspired by the Japanese concept of landscape known as Fukei, which combines the characters for wind and light, two elements subject to change in a continuous play of light and dark. Poetic panoramic pictures show evacuated villages, fields, agricultural grounds as well as forests and mountains. Audio recordings create a soundscape of birdsong and running water, with lengthy video shots reflecting the process of slow marginal changes to the landscapes.

The exhibition "Tree and Soil" was designed by guest curator Iris Sikking. 

About Antoinette de Jong & Robert Knoth 

Antoinette de Jong and Robert Knoth work and live as an artist duo in Amsterdam. Using the media of film, photography and installations, they address complex social, economic and political issues. Their works are exhibited worldwide, most recently at the Photo Festival in Lianzhou, China or at the Manggha Museum of Japanese Art and Technology in Krakow, Poland. De Jong and Knoth's works have won several awards. In 2018, they were nominated for the Prix Europa and the Prix Ars Electronica, among others. Their 2020 publication Tree and Soil was shortlisted for the Les Rencontres d'Arles Book Award 2020.

Publication "Tree and Soil"

This book has been long in the making. It was carefully edited by the authors with curator Iris Sikking, designed by Kummer&Herrman, renowned Dutch designers of many award-winning photobooks, and beautifully produced by printer Rob Stolk in a very limited one-time edition.

The publication Tree and Soil is a book accompanying the exhibition of the same name in the garage of the KUNST HAUS WIEN.

All books can also be found in our online shop.