[Full Length] Multi-species Entanglements, or, How we Become Rapt in Other Lives — with Dr. Juniper Harrower

Written By alexa firmenich

“Through embroidering the outside of the plant leaf and working those stitches into the leaf, I was tracing and following the swirls and whirls of deep evolutionary patterns. It was like I was training my hand to speak the language of the leaf.”

- Dr. Juniper Harrower

 

SYNOPSIS:

Specializing in multi-species entanglements under climate change, Dr. Juniper Harrower works at the intersection of ecology, art, activism and policy. She uses science methods and a multimedia art practice to investigate human influence on ecological systems while seeking solutions that protect at-risk species and promote environmental justice. A founding member of the international arts collective The Algae Society Bioart Design Lab, she also founded the environmental arts production company SymbioArtlab. Harrower is the director of the art+science initiative at UC Santa Cruz where she also teaches art.

In this episode we discuss the tensions that might exist between the fields of art and science, and how Juniper manages to blend both disciplines in her research. We explore the different ways that each field asks questions, and samples (spoiler: ecology involves a lot of counting), and then move into descriptions of her art exhibitions which reveal the language of leaves, Joshua Trees, mycorrhizal networks, deep plant evolution and settler culture.

 

GUEST BIO:

Specializing in multispecies entanglements under climate change, Dr. Juniper Harrower works at the intersection of ecology, art, activism and policy. A founding member of the international arts collective The Algae Society Bioart Design Lab, she also founded the environmental arts production company SymbioArtlab which contracts with national parks, universities, and the private sector to impact positive environmental change. Her research is published in both science and art scholarly journals and has shaped environmental policy. She is a National Science Foundation iCorps Fellow, an Oakland Teaching Fellow, and a Cota-Robles Fellow dedicated to advancing research for multicultural societies. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and her research and artistic products have received wide exposure in popular media such as National Geographic, Kunstforum International, Atlas Obscura, KCET Artbound, the associated press, podcasts, music festivals and conferences. Harrower founded and directs the Art+Science initiative at UC Santa Cruz to disrupt hierarchies of science hegemony through providing paid arts residencies and mentorship to underrepresented students. She teaches art at both UC Berkeley and UC Santa Cruz.

QUOTES:

  • I'm trying to create spaces that allow plants and multi-species to tell some of their stories.

  • I love dwelling in the slippage between science and mysticism. The more you look, you think you’re getting closer, but you’re. There’s this incredible space of mystery there.

  • Through embroidering the outside of the plant leaf and working those stitches into the leaf, I was tracing and following the swirls and whirls of deep evolutionary patterns. It was like I was training my hand to speak the language of the leaf.

SHOW NOTES

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