Embracing the Inevitability of Decay

Decomposium, October 9-11, 2026, is a three-day, multidisciplinary symposium that explores the science, art, and rituals of decay and renewal. Wormfarm celebrates decomposition as a generative, creative process that breaks down matter, releases essential elements, and supports new growth.

Navigate below to explore what we have in store for the weekend!

Schedule at a Glance

Friday, Oct. 9


6:00pm – 6:30pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Decomposium Welcome

6:30pm – 7pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Keynote: Pixel of Grassland (Omar de Kok-Mercado)

7:15 pm – 8:00pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
CHURCH! (Paul Karner)

8:15pm – 9:00pm
Park Hall Grounds
Kindling Chaos (Roger Reynolds)


Artwork + Installations

6:00pm – 8:00pm
Park Hall Foyer
Rites of Passage - The Wake (Dustin Duve + Lexi Ames)

Saturday, Oct. 10

10:00am – 10:30am
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Reading (Lia Purpura)

10:30am – 11:30am
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Keynote: Decomposition as Cultural Heritage (Anand Pandian)

11:30pm – 3:00pm
Park Hall Grounds
Sauk Soil & Water Improvement Group (SSWIG with Randy Zogbaum)

12:00pm – 3:00pm
Park Hall Grounds
Uncle Butzie, the Turkey Vulture (Lisa Hartman)

1:00pm – 6:00pm
Park Hall Grounds
Día de Muertos Ofrenda – Azteca to Contemporary Times (Mexican Folk Art Collective in collaboration with Driftless Curiosity)

1:00pm – 2:30pm
Park Hall Grounds
Rites of Passage (Dustin Duve, Lexi Ames + Worn Mantle)

2:30pm – 3:30pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Decomposure: A Conversation on Decay and Re-form (Nance Klehm, Curt Meine (moderator), Anand Pandian + Aishwarya Veerabahu)

3:30pm – 4:30pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Interactive Poetry (Dasha Kelly)

3:30pm – 5:00pm
Park Hall, Upstairs Library
A De-Composition Writing Workshop: (Lia Purpura)

7:00pm – 7:30pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Tsuzamen


Artwork + Installations

10:00am – 8:00pm
Park Hall, Main Sanctuary
Proscenium (Laura Annis)

10:00am – 8:00pm
Park Hall Grounds
Gallery (Ash) (Max Sorenson)

10:00am – 5:00pm
Park Hall, Downstairs
Some Perennials (Nicholas Gulig + Colin Crowley)

Sunday, Oct. 11

12:30pm – 1:30pm
Free Congregation Cemetery
Prairie du Sac, WI
Antarabhava – A Meditation on Impermanence and Mortality (Kinnari Vora)

1:30pm – 2:15pm
Free Congregation Cemetery
Prairie du Sac, WI
Sound for Release and Renewal (Christopher Braddy)

2:30pm – 3:30pm
Free Congregation Cemetery
Prairie du Sac, WI
What Remains: A Conversation on Death and Renewal (Dustin Duve, Meghan Allynn Johnson + Andra Olney-Larson)

3:30pm – 4:00pm
Free Congregation Cemetery
Prairie du Sac, WI
Celtic Death Songs (Mike, Lisa, and Angus Mossman)


Artwork + Installations

12:00pm – 4:00pm
Free Congregation Cemetery
Prairie du Sac, WI
Small Shrines for Common Deaths (Meghan Allynn Johnson)

More Details

From the archive

Farmer Jay in 2014

Decomposium is the resurrection of a project begun over a decade ago in conjunction with Fermentation Fest: A Live Culture Convergence, when we wallowed in and were inspired by the world of controlled rot. We believe this is an ideal time to reanimate the concept which acknowledges the inevitability of entropy and seeks to embrace it as a creative, generative process.