Fungi takes centre stage at the Blue House in Parkwood for Stephan Hobbs’ latest exhibit

The Blue House in Parkwood became a portal into the mysterious and intricate world of fungi with Stephan Hobbs’ latest exhibition, The Visitor on August 17. This installation marked Hobbs’ return to the space, following his initial collaboration with Afrifungi earlier this year, where he explored mushrooms’ culinary and ecological potential. However, The Visitor takes a much deeper dive into fungi’s speculative and transformative power, particularly through the lens of urban decay and renewal in Johannesburg.

Read more: Stephen Langa’s art exhibition transforms The Blue House

His fascination with fungi began in the most unassuming of places – right outside his Linden home, where he encountered the parasitic Ganoderma destructans clinging to the roots of a Stinkwood tree. This simple yet profound observation set the stage for a conceptual journey that intertwines trees’ organic decay and regrowth with Johannesburg’s socio-political ebb and flow.

Hobbs incorporates living mediums like mycelium and various mushroom species in his work, which portrays Johannesburg as a city in constant flux. The city’s rich greenery, including over 10 million trees, is a centrepiece of his narrative, showing pride and vulnerability. The threat posed by parasitic fungi like Ganoderma destructans to trees like the White Stinkwood is depicted in his work.

Anya Lureman, the exhibition manager, describes the exhibit: “The Visitors by Stephan Hobbs offers us a sensory journey through the life of these organisms. Having living things occupying the gallery space is something quite extraordinary. It blurs the lines between growth and destruction, challenging our perception of both.”

Read more: Locals are encouraged to visit Bambo Sibiya’s solo exhibition at Circa Gallery

This exhibition isn’t just an artistic exploration, it’s a critique of Johannesburg’s intrinsic nature of collapse and regeneration. The steel sculptures within The Visitor are abstract representations of the city’s forest, drawing from indigenous tree species native to Gauteng. These sculptures stand as metaphors for Johannesburg’s history – a city built on exploiting natural resources for mining, where forests were planted, harvested, and replanted in a continuous cycle of use and renewal.

In a city where even the trees are in a constant state of survival, Hobbs invites us to consider fungi, not just as agents of decay, but as crucial players in the regeneration process. His work challenges us to rethink our relationship with the natural world, especially within context of urban environments.

The Visitor art exhibition encourages us to reimagine urban living and the potential role of fungi in shaping the future. Through collaboration with Afrifungi and mushroom hunting, the exhibition explores the unseen networks of life below the surface and visible structures above the ground.

For visitors, the takeaway is clear: in a world where the boundaries between the built environment and nature are increasingly blurred, understanding the delicate balance of these interactions is more important than ever. The Visitor reminds us that in Johannesburg, as in life, collapse often makes way for something new, and sometimes the smallest organisms – like fungi – can have the biggest impact.

Follow us on our Facebook, X, Instagram and TikTok pages. Join our WhatsApp group for any story ideas you may have.

Related article: Jan Celliers Laerskool in Parkview hosted an art exhibition