»Black Smokers« are the smoking chimneys of deep sea volcanoes which are surrounded by a living world that doesn’t rely on photosynthesis, but on chemosynthesis.

These are the hydrothermal sources of the deep sea, whose chimneys emit a cloud of sediment.

These smoking chimneys spew hot, 400°, mineral-rich water, rich in sulphides and salts, which provides the nutrient basis for chemosynthesising active bacteria and archaea.

The lifeforms that gather round these chimney systems disappeared from higher water levels over 350 million years ago. They manage to exist under huge pressure at a depth of 800-3500 m, in extreme heat and eternal darkness.

Katrin Plavčak is fascinated by the existence of black smokers. According to her, they supplant human beings »as the centre of all contemplation« and other possible forms of life become visible.