Events related to the total extinction of the species have been caused in the past by the actions of some strong natural forces, such as climate change, volcanic eruptions, tectonic plate movements, or asteroid collisions. In the present, us humans have taken the place of these natural forces.

Humans have succeeded in changing the global ecosystem in a radical and unprecedented way, their impact on plant and animal species already being equal to that of the Ice Age and tectonic movements of the past, and soon surpassing that of the asteroid Chicxulub, that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago.

The world is populated by humans and their domesticated animals – which, unfortunately, to a large extent, are exploited by Homo Sapiens – and only 1% of the animals that inhabit our planet are wild animals. Moreover, the number of the latter is decreasing and recently the theory of the “sixth mass extinction” has emerged suggesting the permanent loss of several species, caused not by natural phenomena, but by anthropic activity.

Through this event, the artist wants to pay tribute to the animals and the species of extinct animals. Visitors are invited to erase the drawings depicting species of extinct animals that the artist would have previously drawn on the walls of the gallery, in the hope that this gesture of deletion will be a meditative act that will help to raise awareness about the impact we have on the biosphere. Each erased pencil line will represent an evolutionary erased line, a unique form of irretrievably lost life design.

“Throughout the drawings presented at Lapsus, Mimi has been striving to represent her animals as realistically as possible without letting her personal style infuse the artworks. This has been a long and draining process for her, which took more of a toll than she had imagined.”

by Ioana Terhes for Revista _Arta

The performance called “Erase” took place on January 31, 2020 at Lapsus Contemporary Art Space, Timisoara