Mesosanctuary México
4S ESOCITE, Cholula
ARAFURA, Mexico City
2022-23
Role:
Artist residency
Methods:
Zen meditation
Social practice art
In collaboration with:
Lene Albrecht
Ruth Catlow
Jaz Hee-jeong Choi
Elisa Cunial
Velichka Dimintrova
Laura Forlano
Christina Gibson
Ekaterina Gladkova
Sabine Hielscher
Enric Senabre Hidalgo
Vivian Xudan Pan Ladner
Caden Ladner
Liina Lember
Ann Light
Mengci Liu
Mauree Aki Matsusaka
Michéle Saint Michel
Kalina Ntampiza
Anika Saigal
Georgina Voss
Iryna Zamuruieva
4S ESOCITE, Cholula
ARAFURA, Mexico City
2022-23
Role:
Artist residency
Methods:
Zen meditation
Social practice art
In collaboration with:
Lene Albrecht
Ruth Catlow
Jaz Hee-jeong Choi
Elisa Cunial
Velichka Dimintrova
Laura Forlano
Christina Gibson
Ekaterina Gladkova
Sabine Hielscher
Enric Senabre Hidalgo
Vivian Xudan Pan Ladner
Caden Ladner
Liina Lember
Ann Light
Mengci Liu
Mauree Aki Matsusaka
Michéle Saint Michel
Kalina Ntampiza
Anika Saigal
Georgina Voss
Iryna Zamuruieva
Mesosanctuary is a transmedia mural which explores climate grief across 23 realities.
Climate grief can be understood as feelings of loss, anxiety and mourning in response to environmental destruction. Such phenomena typically bring about a general sense of species loneliness, a "deep, unnamed sadness" that arises the estrangement of humans and non-humans (Cunsolo & Ellis, 2018; Kimmerer 2016). In times of polycrisis, how can we imagine alternative ways forward?
In 2022, I launched a global open call inviting other artists to join me in a 5-step co-creation activity informed by moving meditation practices. We explored how the concept of Greek μέσος, or “middle” can become a productive space of engagement with climate emergency, one which is situated in between grief and hope.
The digital mural that I built in early 2023 integrates the original works of 22 co-creators and myself as residents of a future city, informed by the Qiyi City Forest Garden of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. Media coverage of the City Forest Garden as an experimental site of more-than-human ecologies typically focuses on how only ten of its thousands of units are inhabited by humans, while plants, mosquitos and other species thrive. Those who remain there, however, describe the joys of living in an urban forest. “The air is good when you wake up in the morning,” a resident explains.
Mesosanctuary was exhibited twice in México, at 4S/ESOCITE in Cholula, and at ARAFURA in Mexico City. It was supported by the project CreaTures and launched in partnership with Prof Ann Light, and the global community of practice Art Tech Nature Culture.
Climate grief can be understood as feelings of loss, anxiety and mourning in response to environmental destruction. Such phenomena typically bring about a general sense of species loneliness, a "deep, unnamed sadness" that arises the estrangement of humans and non-humans (Cunsolo & Ellis, 2018; Kimmerer 2016). In times of polycrisis, how can we imagine alternative ways forward?
In 2022, I launched a global open call inviting other artists to join me in a 5-step co-creation activity informed by moving meditation practices. We explored how the concept of Greek μέσος, or “middle” can become a productive space of engagement with climate emergency, one which is situated in between grief and hope.
The digital mural that I built in early 2023 integrates the original works of 22 co-creators and myself as residents of a future city, informed by the Qiyi City Forest Garden of Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China. Media coverage of the City Forest Garden as an experimental site of more-than-human ecologies typically focuses on how only ten of its thousands of units are inhabited by humans, while plants, mosquitos and other species thrive. Those who remain there, however, describe the joys of living in an urban forest. “The air is good when you wake up in the morning,” a resident explains.
Mesosanctuary was exhibited twice in México, at 4S/ESOCITE in Cholula, and at ARAFURA in Mexico City. It was supported by the project CreaTures and launched in partnership with Prof Ann Light, and the global community of practice Art Tech Nature Culture.
