Muse No. 12 – June 22, 2020
How can we bring a broader social awareness to our nature spaces, and in what ways does this process of social interaction make seemingly invisible nature more visible? For this musing search out some plants that may go unnoticed on an ordinary day. Use some sidewalk chalk, or create a sign that draws attention to these overlooked bits of nature. Maybe it’s a plant growing through the cracks in your sidewalk, wall, or road, or a tree that you walk under everyday. Take the week to observe changes in the way people interact with your public art and the nature that it highlights. #morethanweeds
Musings on Interaction
What a time in the world to be thinking about interaction. Musings on interaction may help us to think about, or perhaps briefly escape our thoughts about the social transformations in which we are in the midst. Like the other Garden Musings themes, interaction allows us to look at singular elements, or layers of relationships. For example, we can look, think, and create around a biological interaction – what forms of symbiosis do you observe in your nature space? We can do the same around ecological interactions by observing what’s happening between living and non-living components in your space. We can think about social interactions in your nature space. We can think about this moment right now, or the history of your nature space, or even it’s future – with questions like what has happened here, what’s happening now, what may happen here next? We can think about all of these interactions laden with politics, interests, power – can you play with these ideas through biological interactions? Can you think about the social interactions as ecological? This series of musings provoke observations about art and ecological interaction.
The Garden Musings Project is an open invitation to look more closely and broadly at our backyards, front yards and neighborhoods. Each week we’ll send three prompts focused around a theme – color, texture, lines, interaction to name a few. These prompts will include ideas to guide a musing or conversation between you and your nearby outdoor spaces. Try each of the exercises, or stick with one that evolves into a regular practice.
Every few weeks, we’ll have a live-stream conversation (via Zoom) to share our experiences, and to chat with artists, educators, writers, poets and gardeners from New Mexico and a far about their own practices observing and interacting with their gardens, landscapes and other natures around them.
Ways to Join: Participate at any level in the project is welcome. Try the weekly musings as they come up in your social media feeds. Sign-up for the project emails below to receive the weekly musings in your inbox, as well as the information for the group gatherings via Zoom through the registration list.
