ARTS & CULTURE
July 4, 2022
11
MARVELLOUS MUSHROOMS
Changing how you think about fungi in What a Mushroom Lives For The book launch gave insight into mushrooms and their impact on our world JO CE LY N ST EVEN S / / SF U STUD E NT
On July 16, I found myself attending my first book launch event for SFU anthropology professor Michael Hathaway’s new book, What a Mushroom Lives For: Matsutake and The Worlds They Make. Although I’m not currently an avid reader, my obsession with mushrooms propelled me to buy the nonfiction book without a second thought. The event was hosted at Massy Arts Society, and Hathaway was joined by Spencer Greening, a Gitga’at doctoral student at SFU. They shared a conversation about the book and the ways fungi have been interpreted in western societies. Owned and operated by the same crew from Massy Books, the room was cozy with lots of cool books and art showcased throughout. The energy at the event was very welcoming, and the community of fellow mushroom lovers in the audience were chatting away like old friends. Complete with complimentary food and wine, the book launch felt more like a living-room gathering. In the first part of What a Mushroom Lives For, the reader is able to reimagine fungi as more than a simple mushroom on the forest floor. Hathway argues our planet is habitable because of fungi and how they are critical life partners for all living things. The second half of the book focuses on Hathaway’s research in China on a specific mushroom — the matsutake — and the important role this sole fungi plays in our world. Hathaway
This book on the enchanting worlds of mushrooms is one to add to your summer reading list. talked about his time with the Tibetan and Yi people and how the matsutake has impacted their ways of life and interactions with the land. This point was contrasted with the fact that matsutakes are a multibillion-dollar global trade item. Hathaway was challenged to think about forms of “agency and observation” in ways that he never thought of before in relation to plants and fungi. He hopes others will be challenged in the same way when reading his book. “It’s just a given that other beings have agency,” Greening said when asked to share his Indigenous knowledge in relation to fungi. “When I hear elders talk about other beings [ . . . ] they’re talked about in a way that they’re just human. We might say the mountain goat people, the wolf people, the salmon people, and often when I hear oral histories, they say society. The mountain goat society, the salmon society, again, it’s this expression that there’s this deep, sort of institutionalism.” Greening then asked Hathaway if there are any examples of institutionalism in the mushroom world. Hathaway brought up an example of encountering this in his personal life. “[I was] looking at this piece of cutting board that I have from an old pear tree and you can see the histories of fungal
PHOTO: Jocelyn Stevens / The Peak
interactions in that, you see these black lines as they’ve engaged,” expressed Hathaway. “There are these interesting physical archives of the histories of these relations going on that we just have the slightest hint.” The idea that mushrooms, too, have institutionalism similar to other beings was very eye-opening. Even though I went into this event with some knowledge about mushrooms, it altered my views of fungi and their agency. Despite fungi being associated with poison in western societies for so long, it was encouraging to have people come together with open minds and listen to two people talk about the ways in which fungi shape our world. I found myself very engaged with the conversation, listening to Hathaway and Greening’s conversation at the edge of my seat. With all the fascinating things I learned about the magical matsutake from the event and the book so far, I’m really looking forward to reading more about “the worlds they make.” You can purchase What a Mushroom Lives For: Matsutake and The Worlds They Make at Massy Books either online on their website or in store.
PICTURE PERFECT
lessLIE’s Salish Modern/Tradition collection reclaims literacy through Indigenous oral and visual traditions This collection acquired by SFU reclaims his Peoples’ narrative through seven paintings JO CE LY N ST EVEN S / / SF U STUD E NT
SFU’s Teck Gallery is featuring an art collection by lessLIE, a “Coast Salish artist from the Cowichan Tribes,” until September 25. Salish Modern/Tradition is a collection of seven different acrylic-on-paper paintings which are inspired by the ways colonizers have used language as a tool against Indigenous culture and traditions. He combines the English language with visuals inspired by his Coast Salish culture to show the complex duality of the written word, “an instrument for both cultural oppression and cultural survival of his People.” The exhibit is held at Teck Gallery, a small area located in SFU’s Harbour Centre campus. It is easily accessible with a ramp for those who need it to get onto the platformed area. The paintings were nicely laid out on the west and east walls, and the view of the harbour waterfront from the large window amplified the experience. There weren’t any individual descriptions for each piece, and visitors were encouraged to view the accompanying support material online. Each painting was painted in a circular shape and framed in a white square, laid out in an order that flowed well. lessLIE conveyed the interconnected relationship between the English language, Indigenous oral tradition, and visual symbolism. According to the exhibit description, “he argues that individual Coast Salish design elements, such as circles, ovals, crescents, trigons and u-forms, are like the letters of an alphabet, which can be used to visually ‘spell’ any image.” lessLIE, therefore, accepts literacy without sacrificing deep cultural connection, which is a powerful critique of how it was weaponized for assimilation throughout colonization.
Teck Gallery is the perfect place to showcase LessLIE’s Salish Modern/Tradition with its view of the waterfront. My favourite pieces ended up being the two that caught my eye as soon as I got there due to their colour scheme and stylistic differences from the other pieces. The first piece stuck out to me because of its bright pop of yellow and was titled Sun, Salmon, Frogs and Ravens. lessLIE strategically used the yellow on the white canvas to bring out the different animals listed in the title, and the circle was outlined by a red paint. Although it gave the impression of being an uncomplicated painting, when I looked at it long enough, I could see the subtle shape and essence of sun, salmon, frogs, and ravens. The second piece that I really liked was called heART. This piece was particularly striking because lessLIE used white paint on white paper, and was contrasted with a deep, dark blue background to bring out the boldness of the white circle. This made the circle eye-catching and gives it a 3-dimensional look when I observed it with less focus. I was attracted to this painting because of the white-onwhite concept, which seems overly simple but was quite captivating. Similarly to Sun, Salmon, Frogs and Ravens, when you look long enough, you can see two fish-like figures using their fins to make a heart shape. The other pieces were also very well done and used a lot of red and black pigments, which was completely different from the two that struck out to me. We learned about pictographs
PHOTO: Rachel Topham Photography / SFU
and the pigments that are used when creating them in my Indigenous Studies class last semester: red pigment is used in some Indigenous cultures as it carries a spiritual or mystical meaning. Something that came to mind while viewing my two favourite pieces in relation to the other ones was that they seemed to be the sun and moon for the other paintings. This was due to the circular motifs, the colour choices of the two pieces, and how they were placed on opposite walls from each other. The Sun, Salmon, Frogs and Ravens piece was bright yellow with red elements like the sun. In contrast, the white with blue detail in the heART piece reminded me of the moon. This made the pieces feel really connected, and illustrated the intertwined nature and storytelling aspect of the collection. I enjoyed going to view lessLIE’s Indigenous art and his powerful use of negative space. It’s one of my favourite kinds of artwork to see as it can come in so many forms, have many different meanings, and cultural interpretations. The collection is beautiful, critical, and worth a visit to downtown Vancouver. You can view Salish Modern/Tradition at the Teck Gallery until September 25, and an accompanying support material is available online.
