Terra Incognita
Photograph, 365 x 260 cm, 2012.

”Terra Incognita” is an optically magnified (1:180) cross-section of tissue from a cancer tumour of the type Clear Cell Renal Carcinoma (clear cell kidney cancer). The work is a reminder of how close the microscopic sometimes is to the macroscopic. The term terra incognita was used in the 16th century by cartographers to mark uncharted areas.

The work is produced in different versions. It has been installed so that the reference to the map has been emphasised. Folded either using the miura technique or as a rolled up map. It has been displayed in a boiler room, where moisture and water caused a slow decay of the paper - a process that illustrated the evolutionary character of the cancer, where the genetic or epigenetic changes promote speed up the growth of cancer cells to the detriment of normal cells.