Until September 18, 2016, Berlin-based artist Yadegar Asisi project the Great Barrier Reef will surround visitors into a full-scale, 360-degree panorama of Australia’s coral reef at the Panometer Leipzig.
The Panorama of the Great Barrier Reef fits in seamlessly with the series of Yadegar Asisi’s Nature Panoramas. Underlying this Panorama are the artist’s fascination and wonder about the complex relationships existing in nature and the unique beauty of a fragile ecosystem. Essential for the development of coral reefs are tiny polyps, sedentary marine cnidarians living in colonies that excrete a calcium carbonate skeleton at their base – and this, in the course of hundreds of years, results in coral reefs. They offer a unique habitat for countless fauna and flora.
Since 2012, Yadegar Asisi has intensively worked on this theme: “For me, themes of nature inspire me to reflect on our role in this world. The Panorama is a very special artistic medium for creating pictures. This inspires me to such an extent as to give me the courage to tackle such complex themes as the Great Barrier Reef.”
Asisi undertook several research trips to the world of corals, sponges, mussels, starfish, clownfish, turtles, rays, sharks and groupers in the turquoise-coloured waters of the Pacific Ocean, in order to carry out surface and underwater research and familiarise himself with the subject. In Port Douglas, he received support from Ben Cropp, a passionate documentary filmmaker and diver, who led him to hitherto undiscovered corners of the reef.
Visitors experience the reef as if they were underwater – the diverse submarine world of corals, marine fauna and flora is revealed with its interaction in fascinating colours and ever-changing light conditions. With the blaze of colours and richness of detail, Yadegar Asisi focuses on the uniqueness of creation contained beneath the water’s surface. With a height of 32 metres and a circumference of more than 110 metres, he has created a hyper-realistic art space, which in this perfection, ideal brightness and visibility could not be experienced this way in nature.
Yadegar Asisi’s 360°Panorama “GREAT BARRIER REEF – The Magical World of the Coral Reef” will be on display in the German city of Leipzig until 18 September 2016 – click here for more details.
all images by Tom Schulze © asisi