LAMENT DI MARGHERITA PEVERE: BIOARTE, MORTE E LUTTO AMBIENTALE NELL’ANTROPOCENE ATTRAVERSO UN DIALOGO CON L’ARTISTA

Abstract

This article explores Margherita Pevere’s latest performance work Lament, which investigates post-wildfire ecological processes through a posthuman perspective. As part of her long-term project untaming death, Lament combines bioart, performance, and community engagement to examine the complex relationship between death, ecology, and environmental grief in the Anthropocene. Through a detailed interview, Pevere discusses how she transforms her body into a hybrid creature of the soil, moving through a carefully constructed installation of burnt earth, charcoal, and glass sculptures containing living moss ecosystems. The performance challenges traditional binary perspectives on death and nature, drawing from queer ecology and death studies to present death as a vital, generative process rather than merely an endpoint. The work addresses contemporary environmental challenges such as ecological grief (eco-grief) and solastalgia, while incorporating scientific collaboration with researchers and engagement with communities affected by extreme wildfires. Pevere’s transdisciplinary approach combines biological protocols, performance art, and philosophical inquiry to create what she terms “arts of vulnerability.” The installation remains as a “death bed” after the performance, featuring glass sculptures containing treated burnt soil and moss that continue to evolve throughout the exhibition period. This creates a tension between human and more-than-human temporalities, making tangible the complex ecological processes that follow environmental destruction. The article reveals how Lament contributes to contemporary discussions about environmental crisis, death, and regeneration through its unique combination of artistic practice, scientific research, and community involvement.