Invasive Species: Eco/Systems Land Based Initiatives (2023) Philadelphia, PA
From September 15th through October 15th, 2023, an interactive public installation will be presented near the Cut, a sub-street level, open-air green space that runs parallel to Callowhill Street from North Broad Street to 18th Street. The project is installed along the 18th Street pedestrian bridge that traverses the Cut. Asian Arts Initiative (AAI), in collaboration with eo Studio and 2022 Artists-in-Residence Dr. Ashley Gripper (of Land Based Jawns) and Sonia Galiber (of Soil Generation), present an immersive mixed reality project called Invasive Species: Eco/Systems Land Based Initiatives. The project invites visitors to use mixed reality as they cross-pollinate the Cut’s diverse plant life with narratives about cultural and physical migration. Throughout the project, eo Studio, Gripper, and Galiber engage community members to collect personal narratives and migration stories. The project includes an interactive multimedia performance on October 7th and 8th along the 18th Street Bridge. Details in the Programs page; admission is free and open to all.
This exhibit explores the Cut as a complex and nurturing habitat; in conjunction, it scrutinizes the term “invasive species,” offering insight into the way we see flora, fauna, and each other, as well as what we don’t see. Around the globe, plants, like people, have always found ways to migrate, explore, and adapt. And yet, the term “invasive species” is often used when referring to plants and bugs that are not native to a land; especially as they begin to have a noticeable or disruptive presence within the ecosystem. While the impact of that presence may be worth noting, what often goes undertold is the story of human interference that causes plant migration and abrupt changes to ecosystems. Without this piece of the narrative, the plant or bug itself becomes stigmatized as unwelcome and disruptive. The political implications of using the language “invasive species” becomes all the more problematic when considering the parallel to migration and displacement of people.
Read more: https://invasivespeciesecosystems.org
