H Is For Hemp, A Green Art Extravaganza by Maren Krings at Fonderia 20.9

Maren Krings and her work are the prize recipient of PhMuseum 2023 Photography Grant. The exhibition is curated and produced in collaboration with Fonderia 20.9 gallery, Verona.

Overview

Maren Krings, a German environmental photographer, embarked on a six-year journey to investigate how hemp could play a pivotal role in establishing circular economies and contributing to a systemic reset. Her extensive journey led her to photograph over 200 projects across 26 countries on four continents and conduct interviews with more than 80 industry experts.

The culmination of this deep exploration is captured in her book titled H is for Hemp, a globally researched encyclopedic volume delving into industrial hemp within the broader context of climate-change challenges. Produced in a limited run of 700 copies, the book exemplifies sustainability, utilizing uncoated hemp paper developed exclusively for this book, by the German paper manufacturer Hahnemühle, and being distributed with completely plastic-free packaging.

Motivated by the quest for a more sustainable approach to publishing, Maren is now curating a traveling exhibition that extends the themes explored in H is for Hemp. She aims to generate new artistic works while seeking a fresh visual language to delve deeper into the sustainability aspects of photography and art exhibitions. Rooted in a scientific framework, her experimentation involves new materials, frameless hanging, ecologically produced inks, and the optimization of weight, packing, and size for exhibition works. By meticulously recording transport routes, emissions, and material behaviour, the project seeks to provide new insights into making exhibitions more sustainable and the resulting ecological benefits.

Selected by Fonderia 20.9's Curators Chiara Bandino and Francesco Biasi for PhMuseum 2023 Photography Grant, the work is granted an exhibition in their gallery in Verona, Italy.