Photos : Mei Fa Tan

Apis mellifera (mellifera)

, 2020
In collaboration with Nathalie Borgeaud

Apis mellifera

honey lids on non-slip fabric
300 x 182 cm

Apis mellifera mellifera

water-soluble charcoal on painted wood
300 x 182 cm

The hundreds of honey caps form a honeybee (Apis mellifera, in the foreground), giving it a pixelated — even artificial — appearance, symbolizing the hybrid and non-native origin of most of today’s farmed species. “Improved” by human intervention through genetic selection, these ultra-productive workers have gradually supplanted native breeds in our hives, such as the native black honeybee (Apis mellifera mellifera, in the background). The superimposition of the two pieces highlights the threat of extinction that the former poses to the latter.

Photos : Mei Fa Tan