Oltre Terra is an ongoing investigation conducted by Formafantasma focused on the history, ecology, and global dynamics of the extraction and production of wool in relation to the biological evolution of sheep. Commissioned by the National Museum of Oslo, and curated by Hanne Eide, the exhibition is on view from May 26th to October 1st 2023.

Oltre Terra aims to redesign the way in which materials, objects and technologies are presented in exhibition-making, by including the other-than-human beings that equally contribute to their production.

Around 11,000 years ago, hunter-gatherers began to follow and cull flocks of sheep instead of killing them wholesale. This form of game management led to an intricate and unwitting process of co-domestication, creating the first example of livestock and, over the course of hundreds of years, the domestic sheep as we know it today. The effects of this process, however, have never been solely unidirectional – that is, from humans towards animals. Rather, a complex co-evolution has taken place: if mankind transformed sheep biologically, through domestication and selective breeding, sheep have in turn powerfully shaped the course of human history by providing wool, nourishment and guidance in territorial exploration, thanks to the practice of transhumance.

The title of the exhibition comes from the etymology of the word transhumance, a combination of the Latin words trans (across, “oltre” in Italian) and humus (grounds, “terra”). Transhumant practices rely on the movement of livestock from one grazing ground to another in seasonal cycles and according to the nutrients and resources available.

In the context of the exhibition, the idea of “crossing grounds” also reflects the transdisciplinary attitude that defines the show. The research for Oltre Terra has been undertaken via conversations and collaborations with a variety of different practitioners such as designers, artists, anthropologists, evolutionists, legal experts, curators, shepherds and farmers.

The wider installation of Oltre Terra, meanwhile, is a critical take on the display mode of the diorama. Commonly used in natural history museums to represent a static scene from nature, here the diorama is exploded, containing six life-size reproductions of different sheep breeds, as well as documents, films, by-products of production processes and various types of organic matter. Materials, techniques and living creatures are presented together to counteract the current categorisations that separate human and animal, product and biological matter. Extensive captions, written by philosopher Emanuele Coccia, offer an interpretation of these heterogenous materials and their interconnections.

At the centre of the installation is the video Tactile afferents, developed by artist Joanna Piotrowska and Formafantasma. The film is co-produced by Nasjonalmuseetand Fondazione In Between Art Film. The film takes a unique approach to the subjects of the show, focusing on the sense of touch to explore ideas around co-domestication, which is presented simultaneously as an expression of interspecies tenderness and love, and as a form of violence.

The installation also features a woolen carpet produced by cc-tapis made of four different wool fibers obtained from twelve “rustic” Italian sheep breeds. Often discarded as low gradematerial, coarser wool fibers can still be used in products that are not in direct contact with the skin.

For the occasion a catalogue will be published by Walther König and designed by Studio Joost Grootens.

 

 

 

Formafantasma exhibition supported by:

CC Tapis

Manteco

Fondazione In Between Art Film

 

Special thanks to:

Joanna Piotrowska

Alessandro Rabottini

Ewan McEoin

Emanuele Coccia

Lottozero

 

Formafantasma team:

Sara Barilli, Alessandro Celli, Gregorio Gonella

 

National Museum team:

Project Leader: Marianne Moe

Curator Exhibition: Hanne Eide

Curator Education: Line Engen, Brynhild Slaatto

Collection Advisor: Janne Helene Arnesen

Editor: Kristian Wikborg Wiese

Project Owner: Rolf Yngve Uggen

 

 

Where: Stedelijk Museum
Museumplein 10
1071 DJ Amsterdam
The Netherlands
https://www.stedelijk.nl/en

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When: 15th of February – 13th of July 2025