23rd Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest Artistic
Parasitic Wonder

The artwork is a photography of a small art installation. It features a textured sphere, evoking the duality of pregnancy. Its intricate surface resembles the landscape of a mysterious planet while also suggesting the growth of a fungal colony (a new life form thriving on an existing organism). This piece explores the paradox of creation: the fetus as both a miraculous new world and a parasitic entity. While the developing life is a marvel, it survives by extracting resources from the mother's body, indifferent to the toll on its host. The work highlights the complex and raw interdependence between mother and child during pregnancy. This artwork is part of a large art project called “Fragile Beginnings” about the complexity of motherhood and the sanctity of human life.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 01.2024
Date Uploaded: 11.2025
Photo Location: Barcelona, Spain
Copyright: © Leah Larisa Bunshaft