Close Studies of Rome

In the spaces between nature and culture, present and history, life goes on as usual. Primordial species of lichen, moss and shrubs inhabit cracks and cavities in Rome’s antique sculptures and paving stones, surfaces that are being eroded by urban pollution and time at an accelerating pace. Oscar Furbacken’s camera objective zooms straight past the city’s archaeological and socioeconomic layers, for a close-up study of an era alongside our own. In sculptures, videos and installations, Furbacken repeats questions about the precarious position of mankind in the surrounding world. The works focus on scale, perception and temporality. Which biotopes will survive, and which will fade away? What are the criteria for a civilisation?