In My Gut Feelings, I share the healing process of the relationship between my mother and me through a site-specific spatial collage of SCOBY (Symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast). In my thesis exhibition, SCOBY and handmade paper cyanotypes are collaged to the paper, walls, windows, and trim of the installation. Cyanotypes are images of my great-grandmother, mother, and younger self. Pedestals of SCOBY show different aspects of the body-ness of the culture. A microscope with slides of mothers and baby SCOBY and cultures is on a pedestal along the south-facing wall. Collaged on top of that is a projection of text of a conversation between my mother and me.

Additionally, I  made handmade Kozo paper pots and abaca paper planting trays with seeds from my sister and my mentor–which are dyed with black walnuts from my friend Alanna and Joe–holding test tubes propagating spider plant babies from my friend Soloman. The handmade paper is made from Kozo, SCOBY, cyanotype, beet dye, and dried flowers my mom sent me for my birthday. On the window three SCOBYs have edible paper printed with images of my mother, great-grandmother, and my younger self. Tea bags I used from feeding the SCOBY brew are sewn together and attached to a large piece of flax paper which was dyed with my friend Sarah. The spatial collage holds themes of growth, experimentation, inspection, surprise, and participation through material processes of exploration.

I use SCOBY as my primary material, commonly known as the Mother. If the mother is kept healthy, she will grow a new layer called the child. Other materials I used are given to me or made with friends as part of my healing journey. I see this collaboration as a way to invite sharing my journey with a support system. I built a home for the mother because a thriving culture depends on specific internal and external environments. A good home for SCOBY consists of waterproof materials, elevated temperature, low light, and shallow walls with plenty of surface area. 

In My Gut Feelings, participants can explore materials by using a compound microscope to view prepared SCOBY slides with provided instructions. Participants can explore fermentation by filling a test tube takeaway prompted to consider how healing processes involve sharing and letting go. The kombucha in the test tube will evaporate and consume the paper. During the reception, I serve SCOBY treats using permission-based techniques to share and digest themes in my practice.

Alexis Schramel’s Website: alexisschramel.com

Instagram: @alexis_schramel_art