Mark Dion belongs to the political artists who pioneered the way we understand nature, the environment and ecology. The appropriation of scientific methods such as field research, organizing, collecting and presenting objects is an essential part of his artistic work, in which he examines the representation of nature in the culture as an indicator of ideological discourse and challenges our perception and common conventions. In his installations, sculptures and drawings Dion illuminates the distinction between “objective” rational scientific methodology and “subjective” irrational influences.
The large-format drawings which are reminiscent of school charts, cover a variety of encyclopaedic topics with an ironic gaze, meticulous attention to details and philosophical sharpness, whereupon the overlap of reality, fiction, art and documentation is constant. Their timeliness contrasts an anachronistic appearance, with contemporary data.
Over the centuries, representation of animals has been continuously adapted to the changes in ideas and attitudes that have had an impact on the destruction of nature and shaping of landscape. Dion’s Sculptures idiosyncratically portray collectors. The graphics cabinet invites you to stay and reflect on the inherent violence in the act of extracting and collecting.