115 – Decay

Fall 2025

Decomposition affects organic matter, but also mineral and synthetic materials, transforming built infrastructure into ruins. Metaphorically, we associate these phenomena with the crumbling of political and economic structures or the destruction of our civilization. But decomposition also promises rebirth. How, in a collapsing world, can we imagine this rebirth? This issue proposes to sidestep disgust in order to perceive the beauty in rotting matter and discover other ways of envisioning our decline. It's about sifting through our debris to extract the substances that will allow us to nourish art and reflect on the world to come.

Cover: Neal Auch
Vanitas with Lemon, Vegetables, and Bones, from the series The Boundary, 2020.
Photo: courtesy of the artist