Installation and Performance in the Exhibition Vertrauen (Trust) at KIT Düsseldorf from (June 24–September 24, 2017)

Curated by Prof. Tomma Abts

Medium: High-tech fabrics, ingredients, straps, ribbons, wood, plants, 6 cultivation sets, 6 planting sets
Size: Variable

foraging presents two functional outfits for gardeners—one for men and one for women—made from high-tech materials by Schoeller and Extremtextil. The garments are robust, weatherproof, and designed for comfort and protection, incorporating practical details such as adjustable drawstrings and multiple tool pockets.

The installation was shown in the entrance area of the tunnel at KIT Düsseldorf. The outfits rest on a pedestal, flanked by two cubes containing hydroponic cultivation and planting sets, aligned with the tunnel’s slope. The arrangement functions like a stage, where clothing, art, and technologized plant cultivation converge.

During the exhibition, a performance took place in which repotting plants symbolized the connection between humans and nature. The action was integrated into the science fiction film Amber, created in collaboration with the artist Nora Zielinski. Visitors could follow the plants’ growth throughout the exhibition and later use the harvested herbs and salads.

Amber (2017)

Medium: Film
Duration: 19:52 min
Format: 1950 × 1080 px

Amber follows two survivors in a dystopian world who have taken refuge in a tunnel to cultivate plants. Their life on the edge between survival and memory, as well as their encounter with art in a museum, raises questions about the meaning of survival, memory, and the role of art in post-apocalyptic times.

The work is conceived as a two-channel video installation, consisting of one film about the two survivors and a second film documenting the opening performance.

Kunstverein Nürnberg, 24 Feb – 5 Apr 2024
Further development of foraging (2017)

Medium: High-tech textiles, ingredients, straps, ribbons, raised beds, wood
Size: Variable

Invited by Kunstverein Nürnberg, Liora Epstein presented a reworked version of foraging in the exhibition Asking for a Friend. Curated by Achinoam Alon, the show brought together primarily Jewish artists to reflect on position, identity, and artistic belonging in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 events.

The exhibition’s title refers to the idea of disidentification: addressing personal biography through a “friend,” thus creating a space to relate individual work to larger narratives of German and Israeli history. For Epstein, this context reframes foraging and raises questions about “Jewish art”: what makes art Jewish, and does such a category exist?

The work’s themes of self-sufficiency and cultivation are now linked to Jewish diasporic practices, including Hakhshara—the agricultural preparation in Zionist youth homes in early 20th-century Germany. The exhibition included artist exchange and two panel discussions, leading to a continued development of the project in sandbox pilgrimage (from 2025).

Image 1 Installation view foraging as part of the exhibition Vertrauen (Trust)
Photo by Ivo Faber

Image 2-3 Video stills Amber as an integrated part of the work foraging
Screenshots by Liora Epstein / Video editing by Nora Zielinski

Image 4-6 Installation view re-foraging as part of the exhibition Asking for a Friend
Photos by Lukas Pürmayr (© Lukas Pürmayr)

© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn