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+++++ F U L L N E W S L E T T E R U P D A T E +++++
10TH NOVEMBER, 2013
This time last year, upon returning from a memorable Residency at Cairns Botanic Gardens in Far Nth Qld, a plan was hatched involving a major relocation within Brisbane. My Art Practice went on hold in March, studio contents to storage and focus was directed towards selling our Clayfield home. Meanwhile, a keen search of Brisbane's North-side led to a suitable place being located which I'm delighted to say comes with an excellent studio space at the front of house. By the start of August boxes were being unpacked at the Chermside residence and my studio was slowly brought to life! And so ends the story of my 6 month disappearing act!
Breaking studio routine paid off by way of more time available for research and thinking. Following a hectic few years this was a truly unexpected gift. Art-making chews up considerable time, space and material resources yet it's only a part of one's vocation. Gaining six months thinking time, albeit amidst domestic upheaval, was the pause button needed to evaluate all aspects of the Homage to the Seed Project. When packing for the move all kinds of things surfaced that reminded me of the inevitability of the homage to the seed project given my preoccupations going back over many years.
To date, the least expected outcome of this project has been the scrutiny (extending to outright disapproval) periodically emerging when the words Plant Science and Laboratory triggered outbursts from various sources. Apparently working in Seed-labs, shoulder to shoulder with "evil plant scientists" was tainting my project. This amazingly child-like reaction continues to surface from time to time, and has pushed me to dig down into what exactly the public's understanding of Plant Science research might be. Back when I started the 2010 Residency in the Seed Lab at Brisbane's (Mt Coot-tha) Botanic Gardens my own knowledge of Plants and Botany was, without doubt, minimal, even if my fascination and sense of connection has been lifelong.
Four years on and I still feel I know so little about plants. That is despite my learning directly from leading scientists both here and abroad, a raft of wonderfully enriching experiences that have accompanied my research & documentation, plus the many hours spent trawling for information. Memorising botanical names and data was never going to be my forte, nor does it feel necessary for me to contribute that particular skill, as much as I might admire it in others. What is critical now is not so much what we individually know in isolation, but surely the quality of material being shared, the ways it is shared and the purpose it is put to!
What has issued from my own immersion in all this is the desire to open windows to the remarkable dimensionality of the plant world and all that interacts with, through and around it. Although I fear that I fail dismally in this aim (one's imaginings of what's possible are easily greater than the realisation), aspiring to interpret and share something valuable about any of this, from a tiny seed to the potent role played by various species from the vast world of seeds and plants, is a yearning that never leaves me. Nor does the wish to articulate what Biodiversity Loss means for us, individually and collectively, right now!
So why, I've found myself asking, is the quality of our interactions and conversations so important now?
Public or private, whether its across any of the multiple forms of public dialogue or in the quality of what's shared in more personal realms, conversation matters. Too much said, not enough revealed, trust, betrayal...we all think about it, frequently, one way or another! Information age or misinformation age? Its all going on!
One thing at least we are likely to agree on in our conversations these days is the highly volatile state of flux we are witnessing all around the globe. Old boundaries shifting mean, on the one hand more chaos, on the other hand, room for more creativity and innovation. Business cards spell out whole new professions, new directions ... lately I'm reading about change-makers, culture creators and so on. You no doubt can add to this growing list from your own orbit. Making the case for quality conversation is to suggest we may benefit from some willingness to encounter what's currently outside our understanding with a degree of open-ness, a readiness to ask questions, or at least to stand back and observe, respectfully. Perhaps real conversation is little more than making space for something to be revealed before responding in haste or unknowing.
It sobering to recognise I'm almost at the end of my 4th decade pursuing Art in some form or another. As a shy teen I doubted the desire to be a serious artist was at all possible, although ideas and visual expression were as important to me then as they are now. What I have learnt is that courage of convictions means everything, and that many an artist (myself included) is unsure of the legitimacy of the undertaking - for a long list of reasons. Pursuing Art can mean many things... purpose, discipline, a willingness to sacrifice some things in order to achieve often very slow, quiet, long-term goals... perhaps these things may be quite difficult for others to understand or relate to.
Venturing then into the world of science has been an illuminating undertaking in numerous ways, finding the parallels in the process and experience, whilst noting some large differences. I was particularly impressed by the extensive level of collaboration and sharing I saw whilst in Science Institutions. Everything is scrutinised but in an atmosphere of quiet, studious achieving from what I was able to observe. In contrast, the solo aspect of a professional ongoing Art Practise may demand very different qualities of resilliance to keep on over years through the uncertainties, making it a nerve-wracking path at times.
So perhaps you might imagine my surprise to find that merely turning up as an artist in Science territory could provoke such a dubious response from some directions. Paradoxically this has only served to increase my will to persist with a project that could hardly be called radical. Largely focused on the relationship between people and plants, I've explored seeds very much through the lens of bio-cultural diversity, looking back to understand the present as we move into the future, rather than throwing myself into an examination of uber-contemporary, futuristic possibilities. In saying that however, I do keep a keen look-out for new innovations that may bring profoundly important shifts in tandem with an entire sustainable methodology.
Yet what occurs to me daily is that some of the biggest break-throughs needed now could have a lot more to do with our attitudes as human beings than the 'stuff' we come up with... although there is endless room for improvement there! Quite simply my aim has been to comprehensively understand what Biodiversity is and how seeds are placed given the degradation of eco-systems and species loss. At the front of my mind has been the growing evidence that we are possibly reversing the Earth's capacity to sustain life at such a rate that it makes uber-futuristic imaginings and projections look rather like the day-dreams of fanciful minds in denial of a world on the verge of ... well ... something we all find hard to fathom!
Discovering local Indigenous plants, overlooked edible species, the worlds of Ethno-botany, Archeo-botany, Economic-botany, Agricultural Biodiversity, Habitat Biodiversity, Ex-situ and In-situ conservation, and much more besides, has kept me tremendously busy. When I found myself around cutting-edge Molecular Bio-Science in 2012 I was astonished to see the link back to ancient cultures and the deep past that are part and parcel of that realm. I came to appreciate how inevitable the knowledge of Dna testing was as new technologies are in constant development. It struck me that Dna sequencing is a powerful tool in much the same way the computer is. Both have the potential to be used for the greater good or to be applied in ways that can prove problematic. Where business and human beings take technology is whole other matter to discuss which I won't do here but you are welcome to invite me for dinner to continue the discussion. It has become clearer, during a surprisingly difficult attempt to do balanced research on this, that the tools that enable Dna testing do in fact generate considerable fear in an unknowing public ... and when ignorance, misinformation, the doings of controversial corporations like Monsanto, clear evidence of Corporate follies, short-term thinking etc, etc, all get lumped in together then its fascinating how often its Science that ends up with egg all over its face. Perhaps the Science community had not realised how out of favour they were until the new Govt recently showed us that Australia simply doesn't need Science.
The journey I've taken since 2010 has been aided enormously by the enthusiasm and generosity of scientists I've met, and where fortunate, worked alongside. Its still too early to elaborate on the next exciting endeavour into Plant Science on my agenda. What I can say is that it involves working with an interstate Herbarium on a project that will include artists from other disciplines. When it is formalised I will be very pleased to share more on this proposed venture. Its exciting to see opportunities coming forward for Artists to work with other disciplines on topics that are currently critically important for societies to think about. I've also been engaging on projects with some wonderful Art | Design teachers at Kelvin Grove Secondary College in Brisbane recently. This team brings together a range of Art Disciplines to contribute to future design themes and I'm really looking forward to continuing in this work in 2014.
The need for facilitated dialogue and learning in communities and between individuals only becomes more apparent in the light of the velocity of change we are dealing with, much of it far more complex than individuals can hope to respond to creatively when working in isolation. Governments and Institutions are clearly struggling to navigate through old paradigms and it is an absolute necessity we come up to speed on what is evolving before our eyes... if our eyes are open that is. For years a strong feature of my Art Practice has been in creating spaces to generate quality open dialogue and interaction. Curiosity and willingness to explore new kinds of problem-solving and being part of open-ended conversations are such an important values to instil in our communities now. Keeping busy, head down and living like we did even ten years ago might be comforting but its just not really that helpful if we all take that path.
Clear and accurate communications from Science need to be amplified far and wide at the same time other sectors step forward to contribute invaluable knowledge and energy for implementing more sustainable systems. One such organisation I was thrilled to work with this year is The Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance which brought people together from across the continent, from across all kinds of sectors and interest groups, to contribute to the Australian Peoples Food Plan which is highly worthwhile reading. Concerned with fast-diminishing small-scale agricultural production among other key issues this organisation maps a range of critical themes that are played out globally and also increasingly addressed by wide-ranging sectors that include UN initiatives, traditional bodies like Kew Gardens MSB, to agencies like Oxfam. It's all too easy to observe how dire lack of public awareness of the scaling up of response to global threats to food, water, land and such allow misinformation to run amok and the cancelling of critically important initiatives, ideas and discussions to occur right when emergent themes demand the opposite result. If we are not informed we will elect leaders who are not informed. Old paradigms try solving problems in old ways. This just isn't helping!
Early this year, during my Paddington Exhibition in February, I ran a 'Biodiversity Dialogue Series', with two key speakers and five presenters, proving an excellent opportunity for people to meet, ask questions and learn more. Then in June, a conference bringing together participants engaged in multi-disciplinary work across the Arts, Technology, Sciences and Ecology provided a great opportunity to sound out all kinds of ideas. For a while I'd been toying with the name for the new studio - coming up with variations on Seed.Art.Lab. - and it was this weekend of heightened exchange between innovators from every continent that really consolidated the direction I wished to take.
The desire to make space for Science to co-exist with the work I do as an artist is now central.
The chance to work alongside practitioners of Plant Science and the opportunity to get to know all kinds of individuals with a stake in the future of seeds and plants has been an incredible journey. I'm extremely grateful to every person who has given freely of their time to this end. It has done nothing but fortify my conviction of how much plants matter to life on this planet.
The thing that has always drawn me to seeds is that something so small, so humble, so often unnoticed, can play such a potent role in the drama of life.
Long may it be so!
Sophie Munns
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE MAIL-CHIMP NEWSLETTER!
10TH NOVEMBER, 2013
This time last year, upon returning from a memorable Residency at Cairns Botanic Gardens in Far Nth Qld, a plan was hatched involving a major relocation within Brisbane. My Art Practice went on hold in March, studio contents to storage and focus was directed towards selling our Clayfield home. Meanwhile, a keen search of Brisbane's North-side led to a suitable place being located which I'm delighted to say comes with an excellent studio space at the front of house. By the start of August boxes were being unpacked at the Chermside residence and my studio was slowly brought to life! And so ends the story of my 6 month disappearing act!
Breaking studio routine paid off by way of more time available for research and thinking. Following a hectic few years this was a truly unexpected gift. Art-making chews up considerable time, space and material resources yet it's only a part of one's vocation. Gaining six months thinking time, albeit amidst domestic upheaval, was the pause button needed to evaluate all aspects of the Homage to the Seed Project. When packing for the move all kinds of things surfaced that reminded me of the inevitability of the homage to the seed project given my preoccupations going back over many years.
To date, the least expected outcome of this project has been the scrutiny (extending to outright disapproval) periodically emerging when the words Plant Science and Laboratory triggered outbursts from various sources. Apparently working in Seed-labs, shoulder to shoulder with "evil plant scientists" was tainting my project. This amazingly child-like reaction continues to surface from time to time, and has pushed me to dig down into what exactly the public's understanding of Plant Science research might be. Back when I started the 2010 Residency in the Seed Lab at Brisbane's (Mt Coot-tha) Botanic Gardens my own knowledge of Plants and Botany was, without doubt, minimal, even if my fascination and sense of connection has been lifelong.
Four years on and I still feel I know so little about plants. That is despite my learning directly from leading scientists both here and abroad, a raft of wonderfully enriching experiences that have accompanied my research & documentation, plus the many hours spent trawling for information. Memorising botanical names and data was never going to be my forte, nor does it feel necessary for me to contribute that particular skill, as much as I might admire it in others. What is critical now is not so much what we individually know in isolation, but surely the quality of material being shared, the ways it is shared and the purpose it is put to!
What has issued from my own immersion in all this is the desire to open windows to the remarkable dimensionality of the plant world and all that interacts with, through and around it. Although I fear that I fail dismally in this aim (one's imaginings of what's possible are easily greater than the realisation), aspiring to interpret and share something valuable about any of this, from a tiny seed to the potent role played by various species from the vast world of seeds and plants, is a yearning that never leaves me. Nor does the wish to articulate what Biodiversity Loss means for us, individually and collectively, right now!
So why, I've found myself asking, is the quality of our interactions and conversations so important now?
Public or private, whether its across any of the multiple forms of public dialogue or in the quality of what's shared in more personal realms, conversation matters. Too much said, not enough revealed, trust, betrayal...we all think about it, frequently, one way or another! Information age or misinformation age? Its all going on!
One thing at least we are likely to agree on in our conversations these days is the highly volatile state of flux we are witnessing all around the globe. Old boundaries shifting mean, on the one hand more chaos, on the other hand, room for more creativity and innovation. Business cards spell out whole new professions, new directions ... lately I'm reading about change-makers, culture creators and so on. You no doubt can add to this growing list from your own orbit. Making the case for quality conversation is to suggest we may benefit from some willingness to encounter what's currently outside our understanding with a degree of open-ness, a readiness to ask questions, or at least to stand back and observe, respectfully. Perhaps real conversation is little more than making space for something to be revealed before responding in haste or unknowing.
It sobering to recognise I'm almost at the end of my 4th decade pursuing Art in some form or another. As a shy teen I doubted the desire to be a serious artist was at all possible, although ideas and visual expression were as important to me then as they are now. What I have learnt is that courage of convictions means everything, and that many an artist (myself included) is unsure of the legitimacy of the undertaking - for a long list of reasons. Pursuing Art can mean many things... purpose, discipline, a willingness to sacrifice some things in order to achieve often very slow, quiet, long-term goals... perhaps these things may be quite difficult for others to understand or relate to.
Venturing then into the world of science has been an illuminating undertaking in numerous ways, finding the parallels in the process and experience, whilst noting some large differences. I was particularly impressed by the extensive level of collaboration and sharing I saw whilst in Science Institutions. Everything is scrutinised but in an atmosphere of quiet, studious achieving from what I was able to observe. In contrast, the solo aspect of a professional ongoing Art Practise may demand very different qualities of resilliance to keep on over years through the uncertainties, making it a nerve-wracking path at times.
So perhaps you might imagine my surprise to find that merely turning up as an artist in Science territory could provoke such a dubious response from some directions. Paradoxically this has only served to increase my will to persist with a project that could hardly be called radical. Largely focused on the relationship between people and plants, I've explored seeds very much through the lens of bio-cultural diversity, looking back to understand the present as we move into the future, rather than throwing myself into an examination of uber-contemporary, futuristic possibilities. In saying that however, I do keep a keen look-out for new innovations that may bring profoundly important shifts in tandem with an entire sustainable methodology.
Yet what occurs to me daily is that some of the biggest break-throughs needed now could have a lot more to do with our attitudes as human beings than the 'stuff' we come up with... although there is endless room for improvement there! Quite simply my aim has been to comprehensively understand what Biodiversity is and how seeds are placed given the degradation of eco-systems and species loss. At the front of my mind has been the growing evidence that we are possibly reversing the Earth's capacity to sustain life at such a rate that it makes uber-futuristic imaginings and projections look rather like the day-dreams of fanciful minds in denial of a world on the verge of ... well ... something we all find hard to fathom!
Discovering local Indigenous plants, overlooked edible species, the worlds of Ethno-botany, Archeo-botany, Economic-botany, Agricultural Biodiversity, Habitat Biodiversity, Ex-situ and In-situ conservation, and much more besides, has kept me tremendously busy. When I found myself around cutting-edge Molecular Bio-Science in 2012 I was astonished to see the link back to ancient cultures and the deep past that are part and parcel of that realm. I came to appreciate how inevitable the knowledge of Dna testing was as new technologies are in constant development. It struck me that Dna sequencing is a powerful tool in much the same way the computer is. Both have the potential to be used for the greater good or to be applied in ways that can prove problematic. Where business and human beings take technology is whole other matter to discuss which I won't do here but you are welcome to invite me for dinner to continue the discussion. It has become clearer, during a surprisingly difficult attempt to do balanced research on this, that the tools that enable Dna testing do in fact generate considerable fear in an unknowing public ... and when ignorance, misinformation, the doings of controversial corporations like Monsanto, clear evidence of Corporate follies, short-term thinking etc, etc, all get lumped in together then its fascinating how often its Science that ends up with egg all over its face. Perhaps the Science community had not realised how out of favour they were until the new Govt recently showed us that Australia simply doesn't need Science.
The journey I've taken since 2010 has been aided enormously by the enthusiasm and generosity of scientists I've met, and where fortunate, worked alongside. Its still too early to elaborate on the next exciting endeavour into Plant Science on my agenda. What I can say is that it involves working with an interstate Herbarium on a project that will include artists from other disciplines. When it is formalised I will be very pleased to share more on this proposed venture. Its exciting to see opportunities coming forward for Artists to work with other disciplines on topics that are currently critically important for societies to think about. I've also been engaging on projects with some wonderful Art | Design teachers at Kelvin Grove Secondary College in Brisbane recently. This team brings together a range of Art Disciplines to contribute to future design themes and I'm really looking forward to continuing in this work in 2014.
The need for facilitated dialogue and learning in communities and between individuals only becomes more apparent in the light of the velocity of change we are dealing with, much of it far more complex than individuals can hope to respond to creatively when working in isolation. Governments and Institutions are clearly struggling to navigate through old paradigms and it is an absolute necessity we come up to speed on what is evolving before our eyes... if our eyes are open that is. For years a strong feature of my Art Practice has been in creating spaces to generate quality open dialogue and interaction. Curiosity and willingness to explore new kinds of problem-solving and being part of open-ended conversations are such an important values to instil in our communities now. Keeping busy, head down and living like we did even ten years ago might be comforting but its just not really that helpful if we all take that path.
Clear and accurate communications from Science need to be amplified far and wide at the same time other sectors step forward to contribute invaluable knowledge and energy for implementing more sustainable systems. One such organisation I was thrilled to work with this year is The Australian Food Sovereignty Alliance which brought people together from across the continent, from across all kinds of sectors and interest groups, to contribute to the Australian Peoples Food Plan which is highly worthwhile reading. Concerned with fast-diminishing small-scale agricultural production among other key issues this organisation maps a range of critical themes that are played out globally and also increasingly addressed by wide-ranging sectors that include UN initiatives, traditional bodies like Kew Gardens MSB, to agencies like Oxfam. It's all too easy to observe how dire lack of public awareness of the scaling up of response to global threats to food, water, land and such allow misinformation to run amok and the cancelling of critically important initiatives, ideas and discussions to occur right when emergent themes demand the opposite result. If we are not informed we will elect leaders who are not informed. Old paradigms try solving problems in old ways. This just isn't helping!
Early this year, during my Paddington Exhibition in February, I ran a 'Biodiversity Dialogue Series', with two key speakers and five presenters, proving an excellent opportunity for people to meet, ask questions and learn more. Then in June, a conference bringing together participants engaged in multi-disciplinary work across the Arts, Technology, Sciences and Ecology provided a great opportunity to sound out all kinds of ideas. For a while I'd been toying with the name for the new studio - coming up with variations on Seed.Art.Lab. - and it was this weekend of heightened exchange between innovators from every continent that really consolidated the direction I wished to take.
The desire to make space for Science to co-exist with the work I do as an artist is now central.
The chance to work alongside practitioners of Plant Science and the opportunity to get to know all kinds of individuals with a stake in the future of seeds and plants has been an incredible journey. I'm extremely grateful to every person who has given freely of their time to this end. It has done nothing but fortify my conviction of how much plants matter to life on this planet.
The thing that has always drawn me to seeds is that something so small, so humble, so often unnoticed, can play such a potent role in the drama of life.
Long may it be so!
Sophie Munns
CLICK HERE TO RETURN TO THE MAIL-CHIMP NEWSLETTER!