Chloe Nelkin 
Opened on 23 January, Somerset House presents SOIL: The World at Our Feet, a landmark exhibition unearthing the wonder of soil, its unbreakable bond to all life, and the vital role it plays in our planet’s future. Inviting the audience to think about soil as much more than just dirt, this exhibition seeks to unlock the secrets of soil, emphasising how it is the priceless foundation of all life on Earth, and celebrating the everyday encounters that most of us don’t typically realise come from the soil.
This exhibition will also mark the launch of Somerset House at 25 – a milestone year as we mark our coming of age as the home of cultural innovators.
SOIL is co-curated by The Land Gardeners, Henrietta Courtauld and Bridget Elworthy; curator and writer May Rosenthal Sloan and Claire Catterall, Senior Curator at Somerset House.
Bringing together thinkers, filmmakers, global and local artists, scientists and activists, SOIL is presented across three main sections: Life Below Ground, Life Above Ground and Hope. Topics around climate change, waste, land, justice, coupled with beauty and wonder, are all woven into the presented works and installations.
Co-Curator Claire Catterall, Senior Curator at Somerset House
“This exhibition will showcase how soil is the great interconnector, and yet how little we know about it. For too long human activities have had a detrimental effect on the health of our soil. Here, the artists are asking that we take a fresh look at this hugely important ecosystem which is living beneath our feet. Audiences can expect to see stunning artistic interventions and groundbreaking scientific practices that zooms our focus deep underground.”
Uncovering the hidden depths of soil through specially commissioned work, is Dutch artist Wim van Egmond, whose practice combines art with modern digital techniques, and who regularly collaborates with scientists. Presented in the magnificent double-height space of the exhibition, this installation is in collaboration with musician Michael Prime, who has recorded the sounds of the microbial life in soil. This work will take audiences deep into the dynamic and dramatic underworld, making the invisible visible through spectacular sound and micro-photography.
Also enchanted by the richness beneath our feet, artist France Bourély raises curiosity of this undiscovered world, showcasing beings that inhabit the soil through photography on a micron scale, whether that is an image of a dung beetle, an ant or a bee’s wing. Art collective Marshmallow Laser Feast explore the world of funghi and mycelium networks in their vast digital projection Fly Agaric I with a voiceover by Merlin Sheldrake. In an attempt to give ‘voice to the soil’, here audiences will also hear sound compositions from Miranda Whall who literally crawls across soil in her work.
There are strong ties between soil health, climate change, human health, nutrition and regenerative farming practices – questions around what it means to care for our soil and in turn for our environment, and each other. Fernando Laposse highlights this through Agave Regeneration, showcasing nature’s ability to provide real solutions to material waste and efficiency. Based on the impact of the North American Fair-Trade Agreement and use of agrochemicals on a village land in Mexico, Laposse works with local farmers using native plants such as corn and agave to create contemporary design collections. This is something that also resonates deeply with Asunción Molinos Gordo’s practice, which uses agricultural patterns on the land to measure wider socioeconomic and ecological impacts – as presented in Ghost Agriculture – visual geometry of the Nile’s valley in Egypt. As Above So Below is a new commission with Semantica (Jemma Foster and Camilla French) and Juan Cortés, inviting visitors to explore the global agri-business and how community action can return soil and ecologies to health.
The story of humanity’s impact on Earth and the intersection of biography and history is explored through emotive and thought-provoking pieces such as Unlearn the Plantation by Annalee Davis. It draws on intimate knowledge of the former sugar plantation in Barbados where she lives and works. Here, the soil holds memories of extractive colonial violence inflicted both on enslaved people and on the land they were forced to tend. Similarly, multidisciplinary artist jackie sumell is inspired by the lives of everyday people, and this is exemplified in the social art project, Solitary Gardens, which turns solitary confinement cells into garden beds that are the same size; a project which had its beginnings in an incredible 12-year collaboration with incarcerated human rights activist, the late Herman Wallace.
Entanglements between land and people is tenderly presented by Greek Palestinian filmmaker Theo Panagopoulos, whose intensely powerful film, The Flowers Stand Silently, Witnessing, questions the role of image-making as a tool of testimony when connected to people and the land.
The final section of exhibition points to a hopeful and powerful future, where soil has the potential to transform us and our planet. It represents a challenge but also an immense opportunity to build a sustainable future. There will also be a digital interactive work curated by The Land Gardeners and developed by creative studio HATO, consisting of a projected display of the globe, revealing stories of people around the world who are finding new, creative ways to understand and nourish the soil.
In this space, there is also a participatory installation commissioned for the exhibition from Something & Son (Andy Merritt and Paul Smyth who are residents of Somerset House) called Soil Kitchen, which will be a playful, hands-on space where audiences are encouraged to learn about soil through ‘recipes’, sculptures and stories, connecting the visitor with the wonder of soil using everyday language and objects.
Ending the exhibition with an intimate epilogue, is filmmaker Asad Raza, who charts his soil-making endeavour with his young daughter in film excerpt Ge, introducing the audience to the idea of creating “neo-soil” from scratch using everyday materials found on our doorsteps.
Interspersed throughout the exhibition will be In-Focus zones curated by The Land Gardeners in collaboration with film-maker Joya Berrow. These are supported by Mars, which, as part of its 2050 net zero commitments, has a focus on regenerative, climate-smart agricultural practices. The In-Focus zones will bring in voices of scientists and other experts, to give further clarity on key concepts of soil – augmenting the message of the exhibition told through artworks. Visitors will also be able to take part in a lively events programme and contribute their own hopes, leaving the exhibition feeling inspired and optimistic for the future of soil and our planet.
With SOIL, Somerset House gives visitors the creative space to think more deeply about soil’s vital and dramatic role in sustaining life on Earth, now and in the future.
Co-curators The Land Gardeners, Henrietta Courtauld and Bridget Elworthy said:
“This exhibition is about the interconnection of soil and all life. Soil cannot be seen in isolation. It is connected with everything – from seeds, to roots to plants to animals to humans and to the planets. Soil is life below ground and sustains life above ground. We are taking people on a journey to understand the wonder of soil, how we have used it and abused it but how there are signs of hope that if we respect it and work with it we can save life on this planet.”
Co-curator May Rosenthal Sloan said:
“SOIL is anchored at the intersection of activism, education and creative practices. The artists included hope to inspire awe and optimism in those willing to dig below the surface of a world they only thought they knew. We are all impacted by the future of soil and as such it is crucial that there is a diversity of voices included in the conversation about how we care for this magic, but often neglected substance and all the relationships implicated in its health”
Participating artists and creative practitioners include: Agnieszka Kurant, Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, Anya Gallaccio, Ana Mendieta, Annalee Davis, Asad Raza, Asunción Molinos Gordo, Clare Richardson, Daro Montag, Diana Scherer, Eve Tagny, Fatima Alaiwat, Fernando Laposse, France Bourély, Freddie Yauner, Harun Morrison & Paul Granjon, herman de vries, Howard Sooley, jackie sumell, Jim Richardson, Joana Hadjithomas and Khalil Joreige, Jo Pearl, Johanna Tagada Hoffbeck, Julia Norton, Ken Griffiths, Kim Norton, Lauren Gault, Maeve Brennan, Marguerite Humeau, Mariana Heilmann, Marshmallow Laser Feast, Michael Landy, Merlin Sheldrake, Michael Prime, Mike Perry, Miranda Whall, Sam Williams, Semantica (Jemma Foster and Camilla French) with Juan Cortés, Something & Son, Theo Panagopoulos, Tim Cockerill and Elze Hesse, Vivien Sansour, Wim van Egmond.
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WRITTEN BY: Nura Arooj