Exhibition
EIKON Showroom
MuseumsQuartier Vienna
December 5, 2025 to February 6, 2026
Volcanoes have shaped the form of our Earth. They stand as symbols for the geological cycles of destruction, rejuvenation and recreation that have marked the Earth’s history. If we look at volcanoes through a geological time horizon, it becomes clear that they also play an important role in terms of climate change. Volcanic eruptions can enrich the stratosphere with climate-altering gasses, as these form an aerosol layer that reflects solar radiation back into space, thereby lowering the temperature on the surface of the Earth. Conversely, climate change can also have an impact on volcanic activity: if global temperatures climb, ice masses melt and sea levels rise, which in turn significantly alter the stresses in the Earth’s plates near volcanoes and increase the risk of eruptions. In heavily glaciated regions, such as Iceland, there could be a connection between the retreat of glaciers and the associated pressure relief on the lithosphere. This would lead to an increasing number of eruptions and widespread reshaping of the Earth’s surface. Volcanoes also provide a blueprint for climate engineering or targeted technical intervention in the climate balance. This also includes methods known as solar radiation management that directly alter the Earth’s heat balance. Scientists are discussing the possibility of mimicking a volcanic eruption to curb global warming through the targeted injection of sulphate aerosols into the atmosphere. At the same time volcanoes are an inexhaustible source of energy for geothermal power generation, a technique that is used extensively, especially in Iceland.
The artwork eruption visualizes the energy and transformative power of volcanoes. The concept of the triptych is based on photographs taken in Iceland shortly after the eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano in March 2021. For several days the artist scaled the mountains in the Geldingadalir Valley, to approach the erupting craters with his camera from different perspectives. The lava fountains shot up to 200m in the air, new fissures opened up again and again, pouring out lava. Huge streams of molten rock flooded the valley, creating a new landscape that changed daily. The triptych unfolds an arc of tension between compositional form and visual eruption. Different perspectives were stitched together to form a new post-natural landscape whose grey-black tones contrast with the glowing orange-red of the lava. Small silver domes and power pylons refer to Iceland’s pioneering geothermal technology,but also to mankind’s intervention in nature. The composition of the clouds is based on shots of hot steam from a geothermal plant. The volcanic mountain in the middle section resembles a reclining face; its body appears to continue in the right-hand section with lava oozing from the “head”, “mouth” and “chest” – an allegory to James Lovelock’s Gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the Earth and its biosphere can be viewed as one single living being. The artwork visualizes nature’s irrepressible power of creation and renewal; while at the same time, as the viewer’s gaze returns to the “body” of nature, its state of vulnerability and increasing destruction are also revealed.
Michael Najjar, "eruption", 2021
hybrid photography, pigmentbased inkjet print on aluminum Dibond (Diasec), 132 x 408 cm in total
The video work liquid landscape is a visualization of primordial geological energy and the tremendous transformative power of volcanoes. The video is based on spectacular, hitherto technically impossible footage shot by the artist together with an Icelandic drone pilot shortly after the eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano in Iceland in March 2021. Over several days, the two of them climbed the mountains of the Geldingadalir valley to approach the craters from different angles. Fountains of lava shot up to 200m into the air while new fissures were continually opening and disgorging lava. In an 8:10 minute flight the camera moved over a newly born volcanic landscape. The video begins with a flight over an archaic-looking abstract landscape of intertwined stone formations. During the flight, the landscape becomes more and more liquefied and the camera always keeps a bird’s eye view of the increasing activity until it finally reaches the crater and plunges into a Dantesque inferno. On the acoustic level, a complex sound composition enlarges the increasingly dramatic happenings on the surface. The unusual immersive visuals draw viewers deeper and deeper into the landscape and lets them feel the transformation process and creative power of the Earth.
Michael Najjar, "liquid landscape", 2022
video, 8:10 min