Naturkunden @
C/O Berlin I

In the Naturkunden series, the Berlin publishing house Matthes & Seitz publishes books that tell of nature, of animals and plants, of fungi and people, of landscapes, stones and celestial bodies, of animate and inanimate, alien and familiar nature. As in the visual art work of Hamburg-based photographer Jochen Lempert, the volumes are not about mere science, but about passionate exploration of the world.

In this format, C/O Berlin, together with Naturkunden, invites selected authors from the series to walk through the exhibition Jochen Lempert . Lingering Sensations and to enter into a dialogue about nature and its photographic representation. This time with Jutta Person.

In her dazzling animal portrait Korallen, Jutta Person delves deep into the natural and cultural history of these creatures, whose status between stone, plant, or animal has long been unclear. Not for nothing did corals seem to be enigmatic alternate beings that grew in underwater meadows or populated the courtly chambers of wonder as mineral wonders of nature. Jutta Person tells of the appearance of corals in literature and art, shows how they helped as a bony amulet in warding off the evil eye, and travels with us to the Andaman Sea and the Red Sea. An expedition into psychedelic worlds – and into the history and present of fascinating sea creatures, which we should protect all the more urgently in view of coral bleaching and reef death.

Conceptualized by Judith Schalansky and Kathrin Schönegg.
In cooperation with Matthes & Seitz Berlin.


Jutta Person (b. 1971) is a literary scholar and works as a journalist in Berlin. She studied German and Italian Literature and Philosoph in Cologne and Italy. She now writes for the Süddeutsche Zeitung, Literaturen, Die Zeit and the Philosophie Magazin.