Iina Gröhn
Evidence of My Existence
11.12.2025-8.1.2026
Most of the cells in the human body (but not all) renew themselves in about ten years.
It takes around ten months for a toenail to grow and about six months for a fingernail.
Hair grows roughly a centimeter per month,
and a single hair can remain on a woman’s head for up to six years.
The outermost layer of the skin regenerates every two to four weeks.
The heart, on the other hand, regenerates roughly every twenty years,
but the eyes, with the exception of their outermost layer,
do not renew at all during a person’s lifetime.
Most of our brain cells do not renew themselves either during our lifetime,
as we are born with all the brain cells
we will ever have.
Meanwhile, our skeleton is in a constant state of regeneration.
Since 2020, I have collected various parts and samples that have shed from my body, such as my hair and skin. These tiny remnants, which used to be part of me, carry traces of time and identity. Through them, I examine my own existence and its constant change. I reflect, among other things, on the extent to which I can consider myself to be the same person I was about ten years ago, given that most of the building blocks of the human body renew themselves within a decade. I find myself wondering where the boundary lies between change and destruction – when is it a matter of mere change, and when does the change become so irreversible and fundamental that it can be seen as a form of destruction, and thus, the end of one’s current existence?
Iina Gröhn is a visual artist working with lens-based media, text, and sound. Her particular interest lies in cameraless and alternative printing techniques, which she utilizes to explore the essential qualities of photography: light, time, process, and materiality. In 2023, Gröhn graduated with an MA’s degree in Photography from Aalto University’s School of Arts, Design, and Architecture. Her works have been exhibited at the Finnish Museum of Photography, HAA Gallery, Ostrobothnia Photographic Centre and Kunsthalle Turku, among others.
Thank you
Natural History Museum
Contact details
grohn.iina (a) gmail.com
