FUZZY EARTH
The Belly Knows Before the Brain
Fuzzy Earth
The Belly Knows Before the Brain
Long before our brain can grasp it, our belly already senses when something becomes unbalanced. Human metabolism is strongly linked to planetary cycles. Our body supplies itself with nutrients, stores energy and eliminates the indigestible. The very ordinary and yet still mysterious process of digestion is a complex system that is kept in balance by countless organisms and in turns keeps our organism in balance. A continuous cycle arises that sustains life. But how can we imagine a planetary metabolism?
The Belly Knows Before the Brain proposes a change of perspective on digestion and metabolism: from a purely human bodily function towards an ecological practice in which multiple species participate. The exhibition is thus responding to the ecological crises that disrupt the metabolic flows of our planet, such as soil degradation, weakened nutrient cycles or the overexploitation of finite resources like phosphorous. It also addresses societal attitudes and emotional relationships to compost and decay, which are mostly characterised by discomfort and alienation. Fuzzy Earth approaches these notions with ecological understanding and emotional sensitivity. They view decay not as a threat but as a natural part of life and as fertile ground for new beginnings.
The site-specific installation is conceived as the belly of the universe. Within its gurgling, bubbling interior, digestion becomes spatially, sensorially and collectively tangible. Planetary digestive organisms, embodied as ceramic and wooden sculptures, inhabit the space. At once sculpture and tool, they encourage human interaction and support the flow of the collective metabolism. Woollen objects offer spaces of rest and, after human contact, they become hosts for new microbial life. A compost heap in the courtyard, maturing through nurture provided by visitors, connects the interior with the exterior. Shaped by fermentation, composting and nutrient cycles, the exhibition transforms into a living system – a space that is at once a kitchen, compost and multispecies commons.
The Belly Knows Before the Brain does not seek answers but encourages us to practice attentiveness. The exhibition hence creates a space where we can trust the knowledge of the body, the intelligence of microbes and the generosity of decomposition. Decay never signifies mere loss; it is always the beginning of new relationships.
Biography
Fuzzy Earth (Tekla Gedeon and Sebastian Gschanes) take a research-based working approach and position their work at the intersection of architecture, design, art, agriculture and technology. Their practice combines material experimentation, ecological storytelling and speculative design to rethink human–nonhuman relationships.
Tekla Gedeon studied architecture at the AA School in London and is currently pursuing a PhD at MOME in Budapest on food and narratives in ecological art. Sebastian Gschanes is a gardener, landscape architect and researcher, exploring nature, ecology and agriculture, in both practice and theory.
Curators
The exhibition and Public Programme are curated by Stephan Kuss & Veronika Hackl
The exhibition was realized with the support of Emma Ilka Armstrong, Dalma Gedeon, Dániel Gaál, Sophie Führer, Bálint Kiss, Uwe Kolitsch, Vencel Kustra, Rebeka Rácz, Luca Radler, Tamás Révész, Bettina Riedl, Marc Richards, and Emőke Vajda.
With support from
Programm
Opening
15.10.2025, 19:00 - 22:00
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The Table is Set for More Than Us
Workshop
With Fuzzy Earth (Tekla Gedeon & Sebastian Gschanes)
Sat 18.10.2025, 14:00–17:00
Regstration: kunstvermittlung@kunsthauswien.com
Artist Talk & Book Launch
With Fuzzy Earth (Tekla Gedeon & Sebastian Gschanes) and curators Stephan Kuss & Veronika Hackl
Thu 13.11.2025, 19:00
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As part of Vienna Art Week.
Licking Licking Stones
Workshop
With Fuzzy Earth (Tekla Gedeon & Sebastian Gschanes)
Fri 14.11.2025, 17:00–20:00
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Forum Gut Feeling
Discussion
Fri 12.12.2025, 18:00 - 19:30
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Future Talk: Climate X Change
Are We All Compost?
Thu 22.01.2026, 18:00 - 19:30
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Only Over My Decomposing body!
Workshop
Sat 24.01.2026, 14:00 - 17:00
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Curator's Tour
With Stephan Kuss / Veronika Hackl
Regstration: kunstvermittlung@kunsthauswien.com
Das Wissen im Bauch und das Wissen der Erde
School Workshop
Regstration: kunstvermittlung@kunsthauswien.com
Über den Project Room Garage
The Project Room Garage space is a place for contemporary art at the interface of ecology, community and (social) sustainability. Transdisciplinary and process-based exhibitions invite active participation and negotiate key topics of current debates. Site- and theme-specific works provide space to question the familiar and experience the new.
Admission is free!
Further projects in 2025:
Plastic Matters
27.02.–25.05.2025
Grüne Wäsche Wien
14.06.–28.09.2025