THE RESEARCH MATERIAL IS NOTHING SHORT OF ASTOUNDING

Out of the blue, seven trunks and some wooden crates arrive at The Museum of Ontology in Stockholm. The anonymous donation contains records and a diary, photographic negatives on glass plates, a peculiar skull and dried scent traces.

The diary turned out to have been written by Beata Gardelius, palaeontologist at The Museum of Natural History. The photographs and drawings were made by Inga-Lisa Blomgren, research assistant at the Department of Geology at Uppsala University. The research material is nothing short of astounding.

In September 1897, Beata Gardelius and Inga-Lisa Blomgren disappeared during an expedition to the Siljan Ring. The fate of the two women remains unknown to this day.

unique replicas

In the exhibition you will meet life-size sculptures of theese unknown primates: Testa ostreae, Cochlea brunneis, Paleoris alba, Detractisque corticibus, Animantis ramusculi, Conche hyacinthum samt Nigrum folium. Skulpturerna är skapade av Pompe Hedengren. Fotografi av Carl Thorborg.

THE FIRST PHOTOGRAPH OF HOMO AQUATIS

Beata Gardelius writes in her diary: »at 4 in the morning. My hands are shaking. Can I even trust what my eyes saw this night? New moon. Something glistens silvery in the corner of the eye. What kind of creature appears to us?«

a strange skull fused with a shell-like organ

»Today, the camera lens captured seemingly humanoid remains that no one else has seen. Completely exposed among the stones in the bubbling current of the Styggforsen, we encountered a strange skull, seemingly human, yet fused with a shell-like organ covering the right ear and side of the face. This shell, Cochlea in Latin, was abundantly furnished with labyrinthine cavities and whorls.«

THE DRAWINGS REVEAL AMAZING CREATIONS

During the summer months of 1897, Inga-Lisa captures both the environment around Skålberget in Siljansringen and the anatomy of the various flocks. They write: »In the shallow, sun-warm waters of the pond, a collection of fetuses rests in their shimmering, transparent envelopes."«

»Testa Ostreae« CREATED BY THOUSANDS OF oysters

A flock can be identified as »Testa ostreae«. The individuals are covered with shells similar to oysters. Beata Gardelius' diary also shows – not surprisingly – that several of the species they describe are neither females nor males. "They are all gender," she writes in her diary. The replica is created in the natural size of thousands of real oysters. Sculpture by Pompe Hedengren. Photograph by Carl Thorborg.

creators

Director, sculptures, drawings, scenography: Pompe Hedengren
Photographer: Sara Mac Key
Artistic producer: Erik Gullberg
Lyrics: Josefin Rosales och Olof Hedengren
Photographs of the creatures: Carl Thorborg, Sara Mac Key
Extra filmscenes photographed by: Peter Hoelstad,
Film editing: Pompe Hedengren and Johan Björnsrud 
Scents: Karolina Stockhaus
Costume Designer: Julia Wallman
Score music: Lasse Sander
Sound effects: Mats Blomberg
Beata Gardelius: Gertrud Ekman Öhrn
Inga-Lisa Blomgren: Carina Kraft Thomassen
Head Aquanaut: Anna Sommansson
Aquanauts: Elin Mellqvist, Helga Stensson, Petter Hydén, Elric Sauze, Helga Stensson, Kaisa Fexe, Linda Sjöberg Thelenius, Maria Strandlund, Sara Strandlund, Jonas Beckman, Henrik Lundgren
Voice Over: Hedda Stiernstedt, Olof Hedengren
Historical costumes: Kicki Ilander Grafström
Hair and make up: Sofia Lewandrowski 
Historical research: Frida Starck Lindfors
Design advise: Tilda Hedengren
Digital advise: Petter Hydén

contact

Director and artist: Pompe Hedengren:
+46 73 671 26 84 pompe@pompe.se

Photographer: Sara Mac Key
+46 70-357 92 07 saramckey@gmail.com

Scenography: Erik Gullberg
+46 70 938 49 59 erik@groundfloor.se