An extraordinary contemporary art show titled Living Labyrinths is set to open at the Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery (RAMM) in Exeter, aiming to highlight the cultural significance of fungi. The exhibition, which opens on 3 October and runs until 21 February, is the culmination of five years of curatorial work.
Lara Goodband, head curator at the RAMM, noted that the south-west of England is an ideal location for such an exploration due to its warm, damp climate and a local affinity for fungi. The museum is particularly well-suited for this display, as it holds Victorian-era collections featuring specimens like stinkhorn and bird’s nest fungi, which will be exhibited alongside modern installations.
One of the exhibition's highlights is a soundscape created by musician and DJ Jason Singh. Titled The Intelligence Below, the piece is the result of Singh’s hours spent in Devon’s Fingle and Yarner woods. Using biofeedback sensors, he measured the electricity emitted by mycelium and translated these voltages into musical notes. Singh described the process as a collaboration with the living system of the mushroom, noting that all living things generate vibrations.
The show also features a tribute to Beatrix Potter, who is recognized by modern mycologists for her scientific expertise in fungi. Visitors can view her original watercolour studies, on loan from the Victoria and Albert Museum. Nearby, the artist Jo Pearl has contributed a kinetic sculpture titled In Balance, inspired by the fungus Potteromyces asteroxylicola, which was named in honor of Potter in 2023.
In another installation, artist Gemma Anderson-Tempini presents a map of her own mycobiome, representing the fungi that dwell within the human body. To create her piece, Myco-Mother, 2026, Anderson-Tempini gathered red sandstone from Exmouth and soil from Killerton to craft her own watercolors. She emphasized that while fungi have become fashionable in recent years, most research has focused on external environments, whereas her work turns the focus inward.
Goodband suggested that public interest in fungi has grown significantly, partly due to the influence of Merlin Sheldrake’s book, Entangled Life. She noted that the exhibition appeals to a diverse audience, ranging from ecologists focused on soil health to those interested in the hallucinogenic properties or fairytale associations of mushrooms.
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