The Bone is an interactive experience in virtual reality that transports us into the consciousness streams of a wild and farmed salmon. Happening mostly inside a salmon’s skull, the narrations address ethical and ecological issues related to salmon farming, domestication and coexistence with this species, from a non-anthropocentric, eco-philosophical and indigenous perspective.

Located inside an intermediate world — between deep sea and universe; between present, future or past; between reality, dream or utopia — the skull is reimagined as a sculptural and architectural form; an immersive space where the viewer can encounter both material structures and layered soundscapes. Two floating otoliths grow interactively, unfolding remembrances about this salmon’s past, as well as reflections towards its cousins: the captive salmon.

Profoundly inspired by Dr. Martin Lee Mueller’s book Being Salmon, Being Human, the script, co-written with him, emerges as a voice-over from the wild salmon’s perspective—to whom the skull belongs to—flowing in a poetic stream of consciousness.. The experiencer discovers two otoliths that grow interactively, revealing details about this salmon’s life in the past, as well as reflections towards its cousins: the captive salmons.

Throughout this piece, the real and virtual space are merged and hosted by a Yoik sung by Ánde Somby, specially dedicated to this salmon in the Lofoten Mountains, as the wild salmon returned to spawn. This Yoik weaves a unique resonance and spatial depth to the experience. Physically installed inside an old local fishing boat, the piece unites the tactile presence of aged wood with the sculptural sensibility of the virtual skull, inviting participants to journey beyond their role as fisher species and into the poiesis of the fish’s life.

To date, The Bone has been produced in English, Spanish, German and Nynorsk languages.

The Bone has been commissioned by Screen City Biennial, co-produced by Art Republic, OCEANS21 and Interactive Media Foundation; co-created with Artificial Rome.

The Bone has been funded by Fondos Cultura Convocatoria 2020 – Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, Chile and Arts Council Norway, and supported by Goethe Institutes in Norway and Chile.

Video version in English here
Versión en video en Español aquí

• – Idea and concept: Michelle-Marie Letelier
  – Commissioned by: Screen City Biennial 2019
  – Production: Art Republic, OCEANS21 and Interactive Media Foundation in cooperation with Artificial Rome, Berlin
  – Executive producers: Diana Schniedermeier & Daniela Arriado
  – Creative directors: Ina Krüger & Dirk Hoffmann
  – Script: Martin Lee Mueller
  – Yoiker: Ánde Somby
  – Salmon’s voice in English and German: Martin Lee Mueller
  – Salmon’s voice in Spanish: Nicolás Lartaun-Oyarzún
• – Salmon’s voice in Nynorsk: Torbjørn Eriksen
  – Script editing: Michelle-Marie Letelier
  – Translation into Spanish: Adrian Lara ; Michelle-Marie Letelier
  – Translation into German: Martin Lee Mueller
• – Translation into Norwegian: Terje Øverås
• – Translation and proofreading into Nynorsk: Lillian Utne Skjæveland
  – Yoik recording: Pedro Zapata (Echo Sound Production As)
  – Recording studios: Notam (Oslo), Brilliant Voice (Berlin) & Håvard Rosenberg/Sweet Music (Stavanger)
  – Technical lead: Torsten Sperling
  – Art direction VR: Robert Werner
  – 3D Artist: Christian Rambow
  – Programming: Dennis Timmermann
  – Sound design: Christian Barth & Julian Ferreira da Silva
  – Skull: UiB – University of Bergen Natural History Museum
  – 3D scanning: Fredrik M. Salhus, Faculty of Art, Music and Design, UiB; courtesy of Lars Ove Toft, Bergen Centre for Electronic Arts
  – Scientific advice: Anne Karin Hufthammer, Arild Folkvord, Karin Limburg, Karin Pittman & Johnny Magnussen
  – Research advice: Prof. Harald Gaski, Ánde Somby, Sápmi Center for Contemporary Art, Karolin Tampere & Daniela Arriado
  – Project Manager 2019: Florian Köhler
  – Production in Lofoten: Art Republic, with support from NNKS, Arts Council Norway & Goethe Institut – Norway
•  

• Exhibited at:
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial, Stavanger, Norway
  – 2020, Museum of Other Realities, as part of VRHAM! Festival, online
  – 2021, Ultramarin group show, Stanislavsky Electrotheatre, Moscow, Russia
  – 2021, I am a Multitude group show – The Arctic Arts Festival, Harstad, Norway
  – 2021, Am I Ancient or Human-Made Machine? solo show – Or Gallery, Vancouver, Canada
  – 2021, Museo Antropológico Martín Gusinde, Puerto Williams, Chile
  – 2022,Tales of the Seven Seas group show, Munkeruphus, Dronningmølle, Denmark
  – 2022, Seaphony group show, Altemünze, Berlin, Germany
  – 2022-2023, Transhemisferia (solo show), Museo de la Solidaridad Salvador Allende, Santiago, Chile
  – 2023, THE Gallery, Mürsbach, Germany
• – 2025-2026, Transhemispheria (solo show), Hå Gamle Presetegard, Nærbø, Norway
•  

• Bibliography:
  – 2020, Silje Anette Teigen, master thesis in Museology and Cultural Heritage, on SCB and The Bone – view PDF (Eng.)
  – 2020, Michael Krautter’s short film The Story Behind The Bone (headphones recommended)
  – 2019, Martin Lee-Mueller on The Bone  – view PDF (Eng.)
•  

• Publications:
  – Screen City Biennial 2019 – Ecologies-Lost, Found and Continued
  Editors: Vanina Saracino, Daniela Arriado & Tanya Toft Ag
  English, Softcover, 173pp, ISBN: 978-82-691000-2-0
•  

• Press:
  – 2022, Tales of the Seven Seas – The Bone, article published by Magasinet Kunst, Denmark
  – 2022, Tales of the Seven Seas – The Bone, article/interview published by Sjællandske Nyheder Newspaper, Denmark
  – 2022, Tales of the Seven Seas – The Bone, video broadcasted by Experience Program 100, TV2 Lorry, Denmark
  – 2022, Tales of the Seven Seas – The Bone, interview by DR Radio, Denmark
  – 2022, Tales of the Seven Seas – The Bone, article published by Kunsten Magazine, Denmark
  – 2022, Seaphony – The Bone, video broadcasted by Heute Journal, ZDF, Germany
  – 2022, Seaphony – The Bone, article broadcasted by RBB Inforadio, Germany
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by newspaper El Mostrador, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by UMAG, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by newspaper La Prensa Austral, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by newspaper El Pingüino, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by channel ITV Patagonia, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by newspaper Ovejero Noticias, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by channel Diálogo Sur, Chile
  – 2021, El Hueso, article published by radio Alégrate FM, Chile
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial – The Bone, article published by La Panera, Chile
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial: Latin America…, article published by ArtNexus
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial – The Bone, article published by Taz Newspaper, Germany
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial – The Bone, article published by Rogaland Avis, Norway
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial – The Bone, article published by Byas Newspaper, Norway
  – 2019, Interactive Media Foundation on The Bone, interview published by Artsmania, Norway
  – 2019, Screen City Biennial, announcement published by e-flux