Starfish and Citrus Thorn interrogates the historical and metaphorical foundations of the concept of immunity. The work draws inspiration from an 1882 experiment by zoologist Élie Metchnikoff, who pierced a starfish larva with a citrus thorn and observed the accumulation of cells around the intrusion. He identified this moment as the body’s immune response. This experiment introduced the metaphor of the body as a battleground, a notion that has profoundly influenced medical science and our understanding of selfhood and disease.

In their series of paintings, Goldin+Senneby apply the same tissue dyes used by Metchnikoff to pages from the 1665 edition of the Codex Theodosianus, highlighting the word “immunitas” as it first appeared in Roman law. This visual intervention underscores the transition of ‘immunity’ from a legal and political concept to a biological one, emphasizing how metaphors shape scientific discourse and societal perceptions.