Video HD 20 min, 2018-2019. Norwegian w/English subtitles.
In Følger av befestelse (Consequences of Fortification), an unnamed first-person narrator stumbles upon a collection of notes, images, and a herbarium left behind by an elderly woman named Ruth B., who has mysteriously disappeared. Ruth B. spent much of her adult life stationed at various military bases accompanying her husband, a Major in the army.
In an attempt to formulate an alternative perspective on military history, Ruth B. spent years mapping the occurrences of plants as a result of military activity. The narrator retraces Ruth B.’s steps together with a botanist across several abandoned military areas.
Together with a botanist, I explored abandoned military sites in southeastern Norway to document plants whose origins tell us a deeper story. The documentary footage was restructured into a fictional narrative that draws parallels between the often overlooked yet crucial bystanders to the military institution.
Military activities have directly impacted the spread of various plant species. Interventions in the landscape—such as walls, mounds, proving grounds, and bunkers—create new, parallel ecosystems while destroying others. Some species spread through conflict or transportation, while others are deliberately planted to signal power structures. Military zones thus transform into unique ecosystems that reflect history in multiple ways.
Installation Kongsvinger Fortress, 2019
Still from video
Still from video
Still from video
Still from video
Still from video
Installation at Kongsvinger Fortress, 2019