Desplazamientos. Anna Malagrida & Mathieu Pernot
DESPLAZAMIENTOS is a joint project by Anna Malagrida and Mathieu Pernot that reflects on the changes in Mediterranean biodiversity caused by displacement and human intervention over time.
Anna Malagrida focuses on the history of opuntia cacti, which were brought to Spain from Mexico, during the Spanish colonization in the 16th century, to develop the production of cochineal dye. This crimson pigment became one of the most coveted treasures of colonial trade, used by Baroque painters and dyers to color the garments of Europe’s ruling elites. Nowadays, the lack of rainfall and the impact of climate change are weakening these cacti in certain parts of the Mediterranean. As they become more fragile, they are attacked by a pest: the uncontrolled cochineal insect, which has spread widely and now seems to be devastating them. The artist concentrates on the Mediterranean landscape of Cap de Creus, where these cacti had previously flourished.
On the opposite shore of the Mediterranean, in the Spanish enclave of Melilla, Mathieu Pernot photographs the forest along the fence that protects the enclave from the arrival of potential migrants. The eucalyptus tree, imported from Australia in the 19th century, and the pine tree, whose many varieties were introduced by Napoleon, they have become silent witnesses to the restrictions imposed on human movement and migration in this space. Behind the trees, in the background of the image, a massive metal fence topped with barbed wire divides the territory in two and marks the border between nation-states.
Both artists remind us that a color, like a plant species, carries with it a history. And they also recall the many forms of migration: those that were forced in the past, and those that are forbidden today.
