Mama’ is the name of the latest exhibition of SFER IK, a project of the French experimental artist Marlene Huissoud in collaboration with the AZULIK ceramic workshop and Roth Architecture. A large sculptural beehive created in the blacksmith technique following the example of the organic architectural constructions executed by the studio. The skeleton of the structure, with a height of 3 meters, has been covered with several layers of adobe made of a mixture of clay, fibers, animal dung and ash, and then a final layer of wax was applied to make it waterproof and give it color.

The installation will house seven jobons of melipona bees and aims to highlight the active and reciprocal collaboration between humans and insects. The importance of the melipona bees (“Xunán-Kab” or honey lady) dates back to pre-Columbian times. Endemic to the Yucatan Peninsula, they lack a functional sting and are considered sacred in the Mayan culture for the multiple medicinal properties of their honey and wax.