Julian Charrière: Breathe: MONA

Created for MONA's collection, Breathe invites visitors to inhale oxygen released from banded iron ore formed more than 2.4 billion years ago during the Great Oxidation Event — the moment when oxygen first began accumulating in Earth's atmosphere.

Developed in collaboration with scientists, the work draws upon a process capable of extracting ancient oxygen molecules trapped within the mineral structure of the rock. In doing so, Charrière transforms a distant geological event into a direct physical encounter, collapsing billions of years into a single breath.

Part sculpture, part scientific experiment and part meditation on deep time, Breathe reflects the artist's longstanding interest in the hidden forces that shape our planet. By making the invisible tangible, the work invites us to consider our connection to Earth's earliest histories and the fragile atmospheric conditions upon which all life depends.

Acquired by MONA as a permanent installation, Breathe forms part of Julian Charrière's exhibition Hard Core, co-curated by Olivier Varenne and Jarrod Rawlins.