Rooted in ecofeminist thought, Ying Ang’s new book Fruiting Bodies depicts mushrooms growing in pairs, in clusters, or alone – their delicate structures echoing the human body and reclaiming the organic world as a site of feminist inquiry. Like the female body, mushrooms have been understood and valued primarily through their reproductive function. Yet, beneath the surface, a vast underground mycelial network is vital in ways that defy conventional visibility: in care, in knowledge, in reciprocity. Fruiting Bodies documents these quiet, transient structures as metaphors that challenge dominant narratives of fertility and productivity.
Fruiting Bodies has received an Honorable Mention for the 2025 Pollux Prize in the fine art category and is the winner of the Julia Margaret Cameron Award in the nature category.
