The exhibition “Missing” sheds light on the dark side of biodiversity – the extinction of species

On Friday, 23 August, at 17:00, the art exhibition “Missing” will open at the Tartu Art House, displaying contemporary artworks made from 40-million-year-old bones.

One of the most efficient ways to bring awareness to environmental conservation issues is through art. Tartu Art House will be hosting an international group exhibition that creates a temporary natural history museum where contemporary art and science meet. The exhibition's central theme is the endangerment and extinction of species and the cultural meanings of these phenomena. Sara Bédard-Goulet, curator of the exhibition and visiting research fellow at the University of Tartu Institute of Foreign Languages and Cultures, explained the significance of the exhibition: “This exhibition sheds light on the dark side of biodiversity, the part that we don't even know that we are missing and losing.”

Works by Ackroyd & Harvey, Justine Blau, Samuel Collins & Mo Langmuir, Alain Delorme, Katrin Gattinger, Elisa Gleize, Louise Gügi, Jayne Ivimey, Flo Kasearu & Elīna Vītola, Linda Knight, Diana Lelonek, Kristina Õllek & Kert Viiart and Fiona Tan will be displayed. The curators of the exhibition are Sara Bédard-Goulet and Marie-Laure Delaporte.

“Missing” is a follow-up to the exhibition “Unknown” displayed at the University of Tartu Natural History Museum. Both exhibitions are part of the “Unfit Remains” project, which is part of the main programme of the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024. The project aims to draw attention to the extinction of species in the living environment through science and art. The project is also connected to two research projects: “Meanings of endangered species in culture: ecology, semiotic modelling, and reception”, supported by the Estonian Research Council, and “Unfit Remains: A research-creation approach to species endangerment”, supported by the Ministry of Culture.

A public discussion with Professor of Botany Meelis Pärtel and the artists present will be held before the opening at 15:30 on 23 August. On 24 August at 12:00, those interested can participate in the curator's tour. The exhibition is free and will be open until 6 October. The exhibition is supported by the French Institute of Estonia and the Cultural Endowment of Estonia.