Psycosphere

Billions of years ago, life emerged from volcanic vents deep beneath the ocean's surface. This process, known as abiogenesis — the theory that life can arise from non-organic material — forms the foundation of Jakob Kudsk Steensen’s immersive installation Psychosphere. Based on the artist’s own fieldwork, the exhibition transforms the subterranean chambers of the Cisternerne into a portal to the deep sea. Here, video projections, sound, light, and sculptures merge into a narrative about the interconnectedness shared by all living species on Earth.

The exhibition explores the links between physical and psychological worlds, as well as the shared heritage of all living beings. Today, humanity has become the most powerful force shaping the conditions for life on Earth. In Psychosphere, consciousness, movement, and the myriad forms of marine life converge with human technology and presence. The exhibition invites us to reflect on our place in the layered timeline of evolution — and to take responsibility for the life of the future.

In the exhibition’s graphic identity, we emphasised the contrast between above and below — referencing the deep sea and the unknown through a dreamy, blurred aesthetic vs. the linear straight grotesk. For the exhibition pamphlet, we printed the cover on chalk paper to evoke both the idea of a mysterious portal to the other side, and the materiality of natural chalk itself — which originates from the accumulated skeletal remains of microscopic sea organisms.