LIMINALITY THROUGH  OTOLITHS

Displayed alongside over 40 other flags in the main streets of Kaunas, Lithuania, as part of the Kaunas Biennial 2021 and the Magic Carpets Landed exhibition, held from November 2021 to January 2022. ︎

Otoliths are solid structures located in the vestibular system of vertebrates. They play a vital role in sensing acceleration, detecting gravity, and maintaining balance. In fish, otoliths also function as hearing organs, and biologists study them to determine the age of a fish. My father, as marine biologist, dedicated his life’s work to studying the otoliths of native Chilean fish to trace their migratory routes, which predominantly led to Europe. Inspired by his sketches, I created this drawing-flag to explore a visual, material, and conceptual connection between migration and liminality. Through this work, I aimed to poetically reflect on how the liminal spaces—between fish and ocean, movement and stillness—can be observed in nature.

The concept of liminality, often associated with thresholds and transitional states, is intrinsic to both migration and the natural cycles of life. Just as fish traverse vast, unseen borders in the oceans, humans also navigate boundaries—physical, emotional, and cultural. Otoliths, with their capacity to reveal the hidden journeys of fish, become a metaphor for the layered and often invisible experiences of migration. By translating these scientific and personal connections into a flag, I sought to anchor this exploration in a shared public space. Flags themselves are symbols of identity and movement, fluttering between visibility and invisibility, permanence and change. Liminality through Otoliths invites viewers to consider how the intersections of nature, science, and art can reveal deeper truths about migration, belonging, and the fluidity of existence.