Decomposition Art
While many artists choose traditional mediums like oil and acrylic paint, clay, or stone, Marcin Rusak chooses a unique medium, old plants. He takes nonliving organic matter and preserves it in his creative process. Rusak is inspired by his childhood, when he used to play among old greenhouses, and has fond memories of being among the plants. He also has motivation to conserve material, sourcing originally from local florists who were discarding old flowers.
Rusak introduces us to some interesting chemistry. When plants die, they begin the process of decomposition, to return to more simple organic compounds that can then be reused in the environment. They begin to lose water, and small soluble carbon compounds leave with it. Plants break down into smaller pieces as bacteria step in to further decompose the organic matter. Some bacteria commonly involved in the process are Bacillus subtilis and Pseudomonas fluorescens, which are primarily found in the soil. The plant, with the help of microbes in the soil, begins to decompose into material called detritus, the kind of material you would commonly find on the ground in a forest. This is primarily made up of and structures we would recognize from plants.
Cellulose
Hemicellulose
The first image above is the structure of cellulose, and the second is hemicellulose. As they are both polysaccharides, they are composed of sugars, covalently linked together. Their structures differ in which sugars are present, and which bonds are formed. The more complex the structure, and the more bonds in each polysaccharide, the more time they take to decompose.
In most of his art, Rusak is able to defy this process. The flowers are first dried in order to curtail decomposition. Creating a dry environment creates unfavorable conditions for decomposition by bacteria, and by processes in the plant itself. Additionally, removing the plants from an environment, like the soil, where decomposing bacteria are commonly found, decomposition processes cannot occur via these organisms.
Furniture from Rusak’s collection, Perma.
Another way that Rusak fends off decomposition is by encapsulating his plants in resin. Recently, his work with plants preserved in resin, especially his resin furniture has gained traction. The resin that Rusak uses is likely a casting resin, which is usually an epoxy (named for its epoxide group).
General reaction scheme for epoxide resin.
The final hardened material that’s seen in his furniture is originally two solutions, the resin and the hardener. The hardener, or curing agent, is usually a structure containing an active hydrogen, like the general reactant shown in the figure above (R-XH). The resin will be structurally similar to the second reactant, the epoxide. When mixed, a chemical reaction occurs that solidifies the mixture. In the general example above, the active hydrogen is able to react with the epoxide, breaking it open and producing a hydroxyl group. This reaction also relieves angle strain that was present in the epoxide, forming a more linear chain. Many formulas of resin and curing agents contain multiple reacting groups, which is key to solidifying the solution. The more bonds formed between the original molecules, the more crosslinked, and stable the material becomes.
Rusak now has a studio in Warsaw, Poland, which encompasses over 5,400 square feet, and his art will be featured soon in the states, at the Twenty First Gallery in New York. Rusak has a talent for reimagining what is decaying, and he uses it to create his art. The bacteria helping Rusak also have the same idea, to take existing organic compounds in the plants, and turn them into much more simple biological molecules that can be recycled in the future, or maybe, preserved in a resin chair.
References
Wallis, Stephen, and Rafal Milach. “A Designer Who Finds Beauty in Decay.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Oct. 2021, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/10/12/t-magazine/marcin-rusak-plant-decay.html.
“Epoxy Resin.” Epoxy Resin - an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics, https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/epoxy-resin.
“Hemicellulose.” Hemicellulose - an Overview | ScienceDirect Topics, https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/materials-science/hemicellulose.
“Cellulose.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Aug. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cellulose#/media/File:Cellulose_Sessel.svg.
“Decomposition.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 29 Sept. 2021, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decomposition#Plant_decomposition.
I like your title. Your first paragraph draws the reader into a personal story leading to this unique kind of art. Your second paragraph makes the direct connection to chemistry. The explanation of decomposition is quite good and relevant to the art. What we see in the final work is remnants of the biological structures (leaves, stems, flowers, etc.) and the natural dyes and pigments (chlorophyll, etc.). The cellulose chemical structures are relevant to the biological structures. The encapsulation prevents the oxidation of the colored material as well as the break down of the cellulose. The discussion of epoxide resin is good as well and, of course, relevant to the art. The furniture is clearly appealing as made clear by the picture. It is easy to see why a general interest source like the Washington Post would pick up on this. The topic is well chosen and the connection to chemistry good. It is easy to overlook the importance of chemistry in art.
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