By Terhi Ketolainen & Melina Alexina
Pyramid Scheme was our project work for FASCINATION FOR BIODIVERSITY – 12th Environmental Art Exhibition of Kivinokka, curated by artist Egle Oddo, in summer 2016.
The current wave of mass extinction, this time caused by man, has a huge detrimental impact on biodiversity. The shape of the pyramid reflects this narrowing of biological spectrum. In addition, the idea of the pyramid comes from combining the artists’ backgrounds in archaeology and architecture. The pyramid also has a link through its material body and dimensions to the urban environment, facing the Kalasatama construction site at the other side of the strait. The size of the pyramid is based on an international standard used for modular architecture and in construction (1 M = 100 mm). Each side of the pyramid is 12M i.e. 1200 mm long.
’Pyramid scheme’ in this context would imply the man made material being taken over by the natural forces. Also, pyramid scheme implies the fact that the plants in the middle will not thrive as the other plants will grow over them and take all the sunlight. The pyramid would change over time and will eventually, with various flowers, not only become a beautiful piece of art but also serve as a ’bug bar’, for its small part, for the insects in Kivinokka.
After the end of the exhibition, the Pyramid Scheme became a more lasting project, as we decided to keep it in the site, and have been documenting its seasonal and annual cycle since, more or less regularly.
Building and installation
Opening
Seasonal & annual cycle
