HydroPoetics in the Martian House

HydroPoetics is now in residence in the Martian House Bristol until the end of October 2022. The work will be developed through a research project Growing Liveable Worlds: Ethical encounters between human and plant life - with academics and PhD students from the University of Bristol.

Building a Martian House is a public artwork and collaboration between Ella Good & Nicki Kent, exploring what it means to live on Mars. Through doing so, the project providies a lens on how we can live sustainably here on Earth. It provides a critical framework to consider questions regarding materials and resources used in hydroponic systems: https://buildingamartianhouse.com

Xray Crystallography

Over the last 5 weeks I’ve been participating in an online workshop hosted by The School of Machines, Making & Make-Believe.

In week 4 of the course, we’ve started to consider how the instruments of seeing have replaced the human eye, within the realms of art science. In the last century, our understanding of anatomy has been enhanced by photography, Xrays, microscopy and computation - bringing new patterns and perceptions to the way we see ourselves.

Using the lentil as an analogue for the body - I’ve been playing with 3D digital models of Xray Crystallography - as ways to visualise the abstracted body through contemporary modelling of RNA and DNA structures. I’ve also been trying to understand and think about this in relation to Covid19. Here are some short works in progress.


Cells, seeds and embryos

Over the last 5 weeks I’ve been participating in an online workshop hosted by The School of Machines, Making & Make-Believe.

Where does “deep seeing” go in the era of microscopes?

“Deep seeing” developed as a tool for understanding natural phenomena by both artists and scientists, during the Enlightenment. I started to think about lentils as natural objects: they reminded me of some of the microscopic images I’d seen of red blood cells (in the laboratory) . I started drawing them using pencil, rubbings and making scans. Soaking the lentils in flasks of water, they softened and started to sprout.

As seeds, the lentils become a kind of embryo. During the course we discussed Helen Chadwick’s works with embryos during her residency at Kings College, London.

Below image: Chadwick’s Viral Landscapes (1989) revisited in a time of Viral Pandemic (2020)

Viral Landscapes Online