Soil Art Tales

Soil Art Tales

Soil Art Tales, curated by Stefan Cagol, is travelling exhibition touring through 7 venues across Europe beginning in the Serralves Art Foundation in Porto, Portugal. Jo Pearl is one of four artists commissioned to make work for this show about the world beneath our feet.

The exhibition explores the profound connections between soil, water, and life. Through empathy, artistic perspectives, and transcoding practices, four international and national artists from different generations come together to articulate a collective vision of soil as a fundamental ally in shaping a sustainable future.

Jo Pearl created Dirty Secret for this exhibition, a clay stop frame animate film comparing the damaging impact of conventional farming versus regenerative farming practices, on the life in soil. A sort of clay bug and bacteria ballet results. Clay characters from the film, were also kiln-fired at the end of the shoot, to create ceramic specimens displayed in entomology cases, accompanying the animated short.