In ‘The Cultivar Series,’ Uli Westphal Gets to the Root of Crop Diversity and Agricultural Modification – Colossal

FoodPhotography #climate crisis#farming#flat lay#plants#Uli Westphal#vegetables

Lycopersicum III (2013). All images Uli Westphal, shared with permission

Earlier this year, Russias war in Ukraine obstructed the global food supply in a way that exposed just how precarious the entire system is. The conflict confined25 million tons of corn and wheatto the country, making such a crucial stock inaccessible and compounding the effects of an already urgent crisis.

Combined with disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic and the continual issues of the climate crisis, the war helped propel global food insecurity to levels unseen in decades. Itsestimated thatapproximately 800 million people around the world dont have enough to eat due to skyrocketing prices caused by increased demand for a reduced supply. These problems are predicted to decimate local economies and prompt widespread unrestin the coming years.

Part of combating such an emergency involves understanding the core of modern production and how growing practices have evolved over time. Back in 2010,artistUli Westphaltook an interest in the ways farming and cultivation were affecting the availability of certain plants after a visit to VERN e.V. The German nonprofit cares for thousands of specimens, makes obscure or rare varieties available to the public, and is also aregional network of gardeners, farmers, and local garden sites. They have a large garden plot in a tiny village two hours north of Berlin, where they grow a kaleidoscope of rare and forgotten crop varieties, he shares. I walked into a greenhouse full of tomato plants bearing fruits that I had never seen in my life.

Cucurbita I (2014)

This encounter prompted whats become a years-long project of documenting the planets incredible agricultural diversity. Encompassing both the wild and the domestic, Westphals ongoing and endlessCultivar Seriesilluminates a vast array of specimens through striking flat-lay photos. Fruits, vegetables, legumes, and other produce arranged by color capture the breadth of the worlds crops, comparing their shapes, sizes, and molecular makeuphigher levels of chlorophyll promote the verdant pigments of leafy greens, for example, while carotenoids are responsible for bright orange carrots.

FromAmsterdam and Potsdam, Germany, to Mexico City and Tucson, the sources of Westphals subject matter are broad, with some fare coming fully grown from farmers and others as seeds to be cultivated.Cucumis sativus I features fifty cucumber varieties the photographer grew in a greenhouse once connected to his Berlin-based studiofrom seeds gifted bya Dutch organization, for example, while the pumpkins and peppers in two of his other works were a collaboration withPeaceful Belly Farm in Boise, Idaho.

Zea Mays II (2022)

Whether depicting potatoes or pears, the imagesoffer a rare glimpse of species that often arent available in the grocery store or markets. Since the industrialization of agriculture, our focus has shifted to only a few modern, high-yielding, robust, good looking, uniform, and predictable varieties. This change has led to the displacement of traditional crop varieties, Westphal writes, noting that when a plant isnt actively cultivated, it often falls under threat of extinction, and such strains tend to be protected by conservation organizations like the seed banks hes collaborated with in the past. A majority of all varieties developed by humans have already become extinct during the last 50 years. With them, we not only lose genetic diversity but also a living cultural and culinary heritage.

The photos also elicit questions about contemporary domestication practices that are of increasing concern as biodiversity dwindles. Westphal tells Colossal:

Synthetic biology is evolving at a rapid speed, out-pacing public awareness, debate, and regulation and is altering life in ways that are unprecedented.My main concerns about synthetic biology (and genetic engineering) are the havoc that the inevitable release of significantly altered organisms into ecosystems can cause and the increasing consolidation of corporate control over what we grow and eat.

Three photos fromThe Cultivar Series are on view as part of the group exhibitionFood in New Yorkthrough September 30, 2023, at the Museum of the City of New York, andWestphal is currently working to document the worlds edible plants, of which hes culled a shortlist of 3,000 species.Prints of his flat lays are available on his site, along with similar collections centered on fruits and other consumables, and you can follow his practice on Instagram. (via Present & Correct)

Cucumis sativus I (2014)

Pyrus I (2018)

Capsicum I (2016)

Phaseolus vulgaris I (2013)

Brassica oleacea I (2018)

Solanum tuberosum II (2020)

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In 'The Cultivar Series,' Uli Westphal Gets to the Root of Crop Diversity and Agricultural Modification - Colossal