“Die Puppen” is German for “the dolls” and “the pupae”. This work shows pupa dolls, which are “gefressen” — eaten away.

Acrylic boxes are installed in the room. In each box, a doll is hung, surrounded by about 100 black carpet beetle larvae. The dolls are made of pink felt and are in the shape of pupae. From a distance, only a pink stuffed toy cocoon in a box is observed. When one approaches the box, many small worms become apparent attacking the skin of “die Puppe”.

As time passes, the dolls will be consumed and will be riddled with holes. The cases show the evolution of this process. The first box shows a week after the first attack, the others show the attack after increasing time periods, showing how the worms gnaw into the dolls.

The Pupa is the symbol of rebirth. People expect to see a positive change or a happy ending in the metamorphosis of insects, for example in the birth of butterflies. However, most pupae don’t survive this period. Often only death is born from the cocoon. One life is made at the cost of countless deaths. My existence is also composed of the daily birth and death of millions of cells.

Special thanks to: Yukio Watabe, Hanako Miyata, Yoko Tokushige, Saliya Coorey, Bayer Crops: Dr. Nentwig, Andreas Herrmann, Richard James.