Last Universal Common Ancestor - PV

About

The Gallery at The London Interdisciplinary School is pleased to announce Last Universal Common Ancestor, an exhibition featuring a groundbreaking collection of transdisciplinary works that explore the origins and potential futures of life. The exhibition showcases a collaborative new media artwork and sound piece by the SEADS (Space Ecologies Art and Design) collective, sculptures and watercolours by Mary Pedicini, and wall-based works by Hanne Peeraer. Curated by Mary Pedicini, the exhibition invites viewers to engage with a complex interplay of art, science, and speculative fiction, reimagining the interconnectedness of all living beings.

Among the featured works, a video piece by SEADS member Pieter Steyeart visualises a cellular automata representing the Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA), the hypothesised common ancestral cell from which all life descends. This dynamic, algorithmically-generated visual is paired with a sound piece by SEADS members Kat Pegler and Pim Tournaye, which responds to the visual's shifting patterns, creating an immersive, evolving experience. Pedicini contributes two sculptures representing LUCA and the Last Thinking Being—conceptual avatars that engage in a conversation about origins and potential endings of life. Through hidden speakers embedded within the sculptures, the audience is privy to a dialogue that transcends time, touching on themes of creation, extinction, and the fragile beauty of existence. Complementing these works is Hanne Peeraer's painting; her work draws on the interplay between perception, matter, illusion and meaning-making, thus approaching the core of aliveness from an affective place. Complementing these works are a wall-based sculpture and painting by Hanne Peeraer, whose abstract depictions further delve into the mysteries of life, time, and perception.

Last Universal Common Ancestor delves deeply into the concept of LUCA, inviting viewers to contemplate the roots of life and its subsequent evolution. LUCA, as the exhibition's thematic core, serves as a profound metaphor for the interconnectedness of all organisms. The exhibition challenges anthropocentric narratives by inviting us to step outside the human-centric view of the Anthropocene and consider life on a broader, more abstract scale. By zooming out to a cosmic perspective, we can appreciate humanity as one fragment of an ever-changing, creative force. This shift in perspective allows for a deeper engagement with non-human entities, challenging the myth that the world exists solely for human benefit and highlighting the intricate web of life that connects all living beings.