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A wild mushroom-themed exhibition

为野生菌办展览

In August 2022, an exhibition entitled Li Rui have also gone deep into the realm of earth and their living environments, we will be
“The Language of Mushrooms: The Inter- fungi and created an incessant flow of works able to expand the boundaries of art and en-
species Internet” was opened to the public full of life energy. vision a cultural and biological revolution
at the Contemporary Gallery Kunming The exhibition fully revealed the profound triggered by fungi,” she said.
(CGK). Thirty-four (or teams of) mycol- connection between fungi and other life forms
ogists, natural history painters, sculptors, as well as the nature itself. In his book The
photographers, and writers from China, Political Life of Plants, Zheng Bo explored the
Switzerland, France, the Netherlands, Can- collaborative relationship between mycorrhizal
ada, Australia and other countries contrib- fungi and forest plants. Yan Xiaojing created
uted to this comprehensive and interdisci- a series of sculptures collectively entitled The
plinary mushroom-themed exhibition. Ganoderma Lucidum Girl, bringing the life cy-
Yunnan is known as a kingdom of wild cle of ganoderma lucidum into her nature-based
mushrooms. Every summer, wild mushrooms artistic works. Long Pan demonstrates the resil-
are frequently served on the tables of Yunnan ience of nature using hyphae that pass through
people. Zang Mu, a famous mycologist, was the eye of a needle. Cheng Xinhao’s Mushroom
the first to comprehensively research into Banquet transformed the life cycle suggested by
higher fungi in southwest China. Follow- fungi into a set of artistic fables. Photographers
ing Zang’s example, Yang Zhuliang and his from other countries also contributed their pho-
team expanded the study of fungal diversity. tographic works in collaboration with mush-
They left a large number of field notes and rooms and nature.
world-leading fungal research results. Sup- According to the exhibition curator Ye Ying,
plementing the mycological research, nat- while connecting people with nature, fungi
ural history painters such as Zeng Xiaolian are also challenging human understanding of
and Yang Jiankun have produced vivid and non-human intelligence. “By pondering the
wonderful mushroom paintings. Yunnan’s interspecies connection and influence from a
local writers and artists such as Yu Jian, Tang collaborative perspective, and uniting different
Zhigang, Zeng Xiaofeng, Zi Bai, Li Ji, and disciplines to deeply understand the species on

All About Mushrooms

《食菌记》

All About Mushrooms, authored by Liu charm. Thanks to the quick circulation of infor-
Kailin, was recently launched in Yunnan. The mation in the digital age and the highly efficient
book is themed “how a Yunnan local eats wild and convenient e-commerce logistics, the Yun-
mushrooms”. It not only introduces the wild nan wild mushroom industry is exerting an im-
mushroom species in Yunnan and the world as pact on the whole country and even the world.
well as the common methods of cooking wild The author hopes that this book will introduce
mushrooms, but also intriguingly relates the more wild mushroom lovers to Yunnan’s moun-
author’s personal experience of searching for tain delicacies and unique lifestyle.
mushrooms, bringing readers into the wonderful At the book launch, wild mushroom lovers
world of wild mushrooms. from home and abroad showered the author
As a Yunnan native and wild mushroom con- with interesting questions and shared their own
noisseur, Liu is well acquainted with Yunnan’s experiences with wild mushrooms. James,
wild mushrooms. He has been committed to the an American reader, said, “I love eating wild
study of wild mushroom consumption history mushrooms. In the United States, few people
and culture in China and the world. have heard of this delicacy, and we don’t have
According to Liu, every edible wild mush- so many species. Yunnan’s rich biodiversity is a
room species in Yunnan has its unique value and gift from nature.”