Mycology on Fire: Mushroom Cultures to Cultivation

火上真菌学: 蘑菇文化与栽培

Time: May 21 & May 28, 2022, 2–5 pm  

Location: Fou Gallery, 410 Jefferson Ave #1, Brooklyn, New York, NY 11221

Presenter: Sneha Ganguly

Event Coordinators: Iris Zhang, Ariala Luo

Maximum Number of Participants: 15

Ticket Price: $35

活动时间：2022年5月21/5月28日，下午2–5点 

活动地点：否画廊, Jefferson大道410号#1，纽约布鲁克林

主讲师：Sneha Ganguly

活动组织：张琦，罗芷芊

每场限制活动人数：15人

活动费用：$35

纽约—否画廊真挚邀请您于2022年5月21日与5月28日参加工作坊火上真菌学：蘑菇文化与栽培。启发于否画廊当下展览《余烬重生》，本次工作访将由Sneha Ganguly主讲，深度探索蘑菇与火的依存、再生关系，并指导参加者进行现场蘑菇培育实践。

从普罗米修斯(Prometheus)为人类盗取火种的第一幕起，以火之名的万千精神象征伴随着对火的物理研究一直在发展，也逐渐成为艺术创作的情感载体。当下展览《余烬重生》设置在火烧遍野之后的神秘世界观下，特别是作品《火山与圆月》具有一定代表性。相对于火山爆发带有毁灭性的消极印象，伊德画中的火山更为热烈和具有生气。伊德将远景中喷发的火山与前景中生机勃勃的植物并置。“野火烧不尽，春风吹又生。” 伊德的艺术创作既基于美感的想象，也源于他的生活观察，具有现实依据。真菌生物学研究表明，大火过山后会有大量物种新生，真菌就是其中的典型。因此引入这次工作坊，也意在于启迪大家更为积极的看待困境，欣赏生命自然向上的精神力量。

主讲师Sneha将为工作坊带来丰富的真菌学知识。在工作坊中，Sneha将概述蘑菇的历史用途：蘑菇如何作为史前及土著文化中的点火装置；到蘑科菇被加热烹饪后作为食物；以及最新科学研究中菌丝体的防火性能与生物修复潜力等。因为4、5月正是美国东北部野生羊肚菌生长的季节，在真菌学介绍部分，Sneha将着重介绍羊肚菌这种嗜火性真菌。

在蘑菇培育实践环节，工作坊还将涵盖蘑菇种植的基础知识、真菌的生命周期、以及室内和室外培育技术，包括示范如何使用可回收纸板，克隆商店购买的蘑菇创造新的蘑菇菌种等。参加活动者都将得到一个工具箱，里面装有制作蘑菇菌种的材料，并可以在活动结束后带回家。此活动向所有水平的蘑菇培育爱好者开放。

NEW YORK – Fou Gallery warmly welcomes you to the workshop Mycology on Fire: Mushroom Cultures to Cultivate, which will take place on May 21 and 28, 2022. In response to Fou Gallery's current show, After the Burn, presenter Sneha Ganguly will guide participants through a mushroom cultivation process, exploring the intimate and regenerative relationship mushrooms share with fire. The workshop will begin with an overview of the historical uses of mushrooms and then go over fire starters in prehistoric and indigenous cultures to cooking mushrooms with heat, and then onto the recent science on mycelium's fire-resistant properties and mushrooms' potential for bioremediation. Since it is the wild morel season in the Northeast United States from April to May, this will be an ideal opportunity to attend a workshop on mycology (the study of fungi and mushrooms) with a concentration on pyrophilous fungi, such as Morels and Matsutake mushrooms.

Since Prometheus stole fire for humankind, millions of spiritual signs in the name of fire have evolved alongside the physical study of fire. They have gradually become an emotional carrier of artistic creativity. The current exhibition After the Burn is set in a mysterious worldview after a fire has burnt all across the planet, with the work Volcano and Full Moon being particularly representative. Eade juxtaposes the erupting volcano in the distance with the vibrant plants in the foreground — "Even a prairie fire cannot burn all the weeds, when the spring breeze blows, weeds vigorously grow up again." According to fungal biology studies, many species, including mushrooms, are resurrected after a fire sweeps over a mountain. This workshop seeks to motivate individuals to see challenging situations more optimistically and appreciate life's intrinsic vitality. "Out of the depth of misfortune comes bliss," as the Fou Gallery's philosophy goes.

Sneha, the main presenter, will offer a wealth of knowledge of Mycology and demonstration in this workshop. The workshop will cover the basics of mushroom cultivation, such as the fungal life cycle and indoor and outdoor plantation techniques, and culminate with an activity that gives participants hands-on urban mushroom cultivation experiences. Participants will have an opportunity to explore practices and heritage of prehistoric, ancient, Tantra, the Bengal school, folk, and indigenous spiritual traditions, which are Sneha's all-time inspiration. The workshop signifies the relationship between fire and the life cycle of creatures, encouraging  all participants to reconsider life and death in both the spiritual and realistic realms.

This is a low-tech workshop that is ideal for both children and adults. It can accommodate up to 15 people. Each participant will be given a kit to make mushroom spawn in containers to take home. Questions and discussions will be welcomed throughout the day.

Presenter 主讲师:

Sneha Ganguly (b. 1989, Jamshedpur, India), also known as Kali Mushrooms, is an interdisciplinary artist working through the intersection of fine art and mycology. Sneha identifies and studies mushrooms with a special interest in biomaterials and pigments, and synthesizes their alchemical and chitinous properties to create handmade papers, inks, paints, and dyes.  She uses painting and collage, with wild foraged mushroom papers and pigments, to revive a modern mythology depicting fungal science, animisms, and lessons in nature.  Sneha’s aesthetic is inspired by the techniques and heritage of the prehistoric, ancient, Tantra, the Bengal school, folk and indigenous spiritual traditions. 

Sneha co-founded POC Fungi Community.  She is a Teaching Assistant for the Community Mushroom Educators program for Cornell Small Farms.  She is also the Community Outreach Coordinator for the New York Mycological Society.

Sneha Ganguly (生于1989年，印度贾姆谢德布尔)又被称为Kali mushroom，是一位把真菌学与艺术结合的跨界艺术家。Sneha识别和研究蘑菇，对生物材料和颜料有特殊的兴趣，并综合提炼术和几丁质特性，以制作手工纸，墨水，油漆和染料。她用野生蘑菇纸和颜料，通过绘画、拼贴，复兴了一个描绘真菌科学、万物有灵论和自然科学的现代神话。Sneha的美学灵感来自于史前、古代、密宗、孟加拉学院、民间及土著等传统技术和遗产的精神。

Sneha创立了POC真菌社区。她是康奈尔小农场社区蘑菇教育者项目的教学助理，也是纽约真菌学协会的社区外联人员