A Radical Act of Love: Arboresence, Echoing the Mycorrhizal Network of Oaks by Siobhan_Healy

A Radical Act of Love: Arborescence Echoing the Mycorrhizal Network of Oaks

Siobhan Healy

March 18, 2021

Research Question How can I utilise serendipitous moments to distill my research interests into a cohesive approach to curatorial practice? I intend to actively grow and nurture connections and pinpoint locations for this biodiversity project to effect real change, not just art curation, but place making.

Introduction I have three distinct strands to my current personal pedagogical development. The Extinction Rebellion Rewilding ‘Save the Oak’ project, explorations in the environmental impact of The Hunterian Project and additionally Archive as Legacy with the Alasdair Gray Archive as a case study. I will argue that these seemingly disparate projects can be unified with the symbol of the oak tree as a metaphor and a methodology. The oak has a historical link with almost all religions, particularly in the northern hemisphere. The underground activism and connections inherent within the work that I am developing as part of this project is illustrated by an underground network of mycorrhizal roots.

Future Forests, Embedding Legacy in Practice From a tiny acorn, a mighty oak shall grow.1 Recent science has led us to better understanding of a complicated process of communication between trees. It is a mutual association from one tree to another known as the mycorrhizal network. This is a symbiotic association between plant roots and fungi. Their major role is to enhance nutrient and water uptake by the host plant by exploiting a larger volume of soil than roots alone can do, so the system works better. I will consider this as symbolic of the networks of communication between people, place, art and artists while developing my curatorial project. By working with others to create the new forests of the future and nurturing these spaces so that they can become creative havens for art, information and community, I hope my curation practices generate a network similar to that of mycorrhizae between these newly forested spaces and the people who made and frequent them. Humans often act in light of reasons which can then explain their actions, and may also justify them. These ideas go back to Plato (Protagoras and Republic, Book 4)2 and Aristotle (De Anima, see esp. III.10);3 In modern philosophical explorations, Peter Price4 explores the philosophy of sonic art and experimental sonic practice. His theories are described as a vibrational ontology, which could combine with my research practices by working with musicians or performance artists to explore this theme of communication.

1. 2. 3. 4.

Thought to be a 14th Century old English proverb. Plato. Protagoras and Republic, Book 4. Page 52. Aristotle. De Anima, see esp. III.10. Price, P. Resonance: Philosophy for Sonic Art. 2011.

Communication has been a constant theme in discussions of the character of human behaviour in the history of philosophy. In my exploration of the mycorrhizal network as methodology I intend to explore the idea of this scientific development in understanding the mycorrhizal in relation to human experience. As we are now in the new planetary age of the anthropocene5, humanity is cast as a geological force capable of changing the environment. Humans are the major proponent of environmental destruction. However, according to theorists such as Astrida Neimanis6 and Cecilia Åsberg,7 the anthropocene risks show the troublesome differences between humans, and can hide the intimate relationships between technology, humans and other animals. This totalisation of humanity is a parallel risk in some posthuman theorising and some postdisciplinary scholars of the critical humanities and feminist philosophers have paid attention to this for decades.8 To elaborate, this is a point in time that we can consider beyond humans, and start to consider our part in the wider context of the earth’s other communicating beings. By understanding the anthropocentric world as a chaotic amalgam of the various intersections between humanity and nature - both as a part of nature and as an influential force upon it - we are open to the possibility of accepting our part and power within the anthropocene.

The Application of Theory Having been alerted to the plight of 750,000 Oak tree saplings (Quercus Robur) via a post by Extinction Rebellion Rewilding9 on Facebook, in which all of these tree saplings were going to be destroyed, I decided to take direct action. The Extinction Rebellion Rewilding group has mobilised to redistribute to the public and I am active within this movement. By getting involved with this international tree planting endeavour, to put it very simply, I want to leave the world better than I found it. It is easy to feel lost and confused in this current political climate and to believe that one’s actions are futile. It can be easy for a sense of nihilism to creep in. This does not have to be the case. As written in The Man Who Planted Trees by Jean Giono (1895-1970): you can take individual action and it will make a difference. The book was written as a piece of imaginative fiction and considers ideas around human destructiveness and creativity and tree planting plays both a literal and symbolic role.

5. Weblink to primary webpage https://www.anthroencyclopedia.com/entry/anthropocene (Last accessed: 10/03/21) 6. Neimanis, Astrida & Jennifer Mae Hamilton; Composting Feminisms and Environmental Humanities. 7. Weblink to primary webpage https://www.researchgate.net/publication/323526585_Feminist_Posthumanities_in_the_ Anthropocene_Forays_Into_The_Postnatural (Last accessed: 10/03/21) 8. Neimanis, Astrida & Jennifer Mae Hamilton; Composting Feminisms and Environmental Humanities. 9. Weblink to primary webpage https://extinctionrebellion.uk/event/extinction-rebellion-rewilding/ (Last accessed: 10/03/21)

By travelling to collect the trees, this was the first opportunity in approximately 6 months that made it possible for me to get out of the city due to the Covid 19 lockdown 2020-21. It is clearly stated in the Covid 19 guidelines that you can travel for work or study reasons if it is something that you cannot do from home. This project not only was an opportunity to plant future forests but additionally has become my passport for some sort of freedom of movement within the context of Covid 19 lockdown government restrictions. The day of tree sapling collection also happened to coincide with a project that had been arranged with the Sculpture and Environmental Art department. I conducted my contribution to the project from a roadside truck stop on the M64, on the way back from collecting the tree saplings. This illustrates the crossover of the interlinking strands of my curatorial practice experiences. Initially, my contact for the collection of the tree saplings was with Mark Shipperlee who is active within the Extinction Rebellion Rewilding group. He had arranged for the trees to be brought to his land from the tree nursery in Wales where they had originally been grown. An unexpected meeting occurred on his land, in which a couple called Phil and Siobhan were collecting trees at the same time. I happened to have met them several times before at other environmental protest events. These serendipitous meetings and strands of relationships help to form the supportive network which permeates my practice. This also confirms to me that the mycorrhizal network between humans is a phenomenon that can be sensed10 despite its being intangible and non-quantitative, communication flows in a way that is not just words, extra-sensorial and telepathic faculties are palpable and yet cannot be measured and completely understood. I would argue that the things that we don’t understand are enjoyable and can add a layer of magic to our experience on this incredible planet. This allows us as humans to make meaning for ourselves. As discussed in the Culture of Curating and the Curating of Cultures by Paul O’Neill, there has been a shift since the late 1960’s of curatorial practice to a “mediating and performative activity akin to artistic practice”11 and he states that “curators, artists and critics participate in the production of cultural experiences”12 For my curatorial practice masters project, I intend to fully explore the use of oak saplings as physical beings and as metaphors to create cultural experiences. Through the Extinction Rebellion Rewilding project, I have found myself in the process of finding ‘forever homes’ for 1000 displaced oak trees. This process is being documented as part of my project. Oak trees support a vast

10. The Evolutionary Ecology of Mycorrhizal Networks, weblink to primary webpage, https://www.jstor.org/stable/3546985?seq=1 (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 11. O’Neill, P. Culture of Curating and the Curating of Cultures. MIT Press. 2012. Page 87. 12. O’Neill, P. Culture of Curating and the Curating of Cultures. Page 88.

number of insects, mosses and small animals. They are widely believed to be the tree that supports more life and biodiversity than any other native tree species in the UK. By creating opportunities for these forests to thrive, it will create inspirational spaces that will provide opportunities for artists and creatives to be inspired and they are likely to organically feed back into the project. A key figure within current environmental curatorial practice in Scotland is Emma Nicolson, with her background at Atlas Arts, Skye and in her current role at Climate House, Royal Edinburgh Botanic Gardens she is actively combining environmental considerations with curatorial practice. Commenting on her role she states- “a key aspect would be the importance of understanding your context and building connections to create engagement, this is always at the core of what I do! I also really believe in artists as agents for change – they help us re-imagine the future, see things differently and move minds. They help provide an emotional connection to some of the difficult topics and concepts that our scientists are exploring. I think it is important to form long term relationships with artists that allows work to evolve over time.”13 If we consider the planet as Gaia,14 our mother tree , the whole organism works together to provide shelter, shade and nutrients to us and we can reflect upon this as a web of communication and universal knowledge. The overlapping complexities of the mycorrhizal network can be observed, disseminated and enjoyed just for what they are - there need not be any real conclusion or epiphany. Tree planting, caring for the tree and planting ceremonies are crucial to the success of this project. The ceremonies will compound the ideas around the importance of the trees, the care placed upon them will help to solidify the notions of how crucial this reforesting work is. To reforest Scotland is imperative to our future as a human race and the future of our planet.15 In his Critique of the Power of Judgment (1790), Immanuel Kant16 regards trees as ‘self-organising’ but not as ‘alive’ – because they lack an essential characteristic of life: desire (which animals possess). Also, in The Phenomenon of Life (1966), Hans Jonas17 argues that plants don’t possess an ‘ inner world’ because they can’t be contrasted with their environments. Thus, while the animal-environment relation is one between a sensing, directed subject and a ‘world’, the plant-environment relation is between a non-subject and non-objects, or as Jonas puts it: ‘consists of adjacent matter and impinging forces’. 13. Interview with Emma Nicolson for Eco Arts Scotland. weblink to primary webpage, https://ecoartscotland.net/2020/08/08/the-domestic-and-the-global-emma-nicolson-on-how-the-arts-will-be-at-theheart-of-royal-botanic-gardens-edinburgh/ (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 14. The Gaia Hypothesis, proposed by Lovelock, J. Gaia. 1978. 15. Weblink to Primary webpage- http://www.ReforestingScotland.org (Last accessed: 16/03/21) 16. Kant, I. Critique of the Power of Judgment (1790). Page 65. 17. Hans, J.The Phenomenon of Life (1966). Page. 101.

In this example Kant turns his attention to understanding life processes, which seems to largely ignore trees or relegate them to the periphery. Contrary to Kant, I will argue that trees are living beings with consciousness, I believe this due to the current scientific research in this area and also my own instinct. My intention with this project is to identify individual trees and locate their position within the cartography of my Future Forests project. By providing the trees with individual locations and ‘personalities’ I intend to grow relationships with them. The central concept of Kant’s analysis of the judgment of beauty18 is what he called the ″free play″ between the cognitive powers of imagination and understanding. Although this is an argument for the existence of God, I am not addressing an argument concerning theology, but rather how this system of design can relate to the unseen systems of trees communicating and mycorrhizae and how this community of connection is linked to my curation. We call an object beautiful because its form fits our cognitive functions of both imagination and understanding and enables a ″free play″ between them resulting in a pleasurable experience. The judgment that something is beautiful is a claim that it possesses the “form of finality” - that is, that it appears to have been designed with a purpose, even though it does not have any apparent practical function. In more modern thoughts on this topic, within Peter Wohlleben’s book, The Hidden Life of Trees he writes, “a tree’s most important means of staying connected to other trees is a ‘wood wide web’ of soil fungi that connects vegetation in an intimate network that allows the sharing of an enormous amount of information and goods.”19 By echoing this idea my intention is to continue to build a strong connection, perhaps unseen, but supportive and existent.

Arborescence: Identifying spaces, physical and virtual for curatorial explorations Arborescence20 is a term that characterised the cerebrating of Gilles Deleuze (1925-1995) and Pierre-Felix Guattari (1930-1992) to illustrate the concepts around binaries and dualism. In the binary model, sex gender and sexuality may be postulated to align. Under the umbrella of Arborescence, other ways of defining the self, i.e simply on the merits of each individual character, rather than the pre-designed positions in society that we would have historically have fallen into. I will argue that there are correlations between this Arborescent way of thinking - which can be illustrated by the magnificent system of forest roots - and the way my mycorrhizal communication links with others, and

18. Kant, I .Critique of the Power of Judgment (1790). Page 56. 19. Peter Wohlleben’s book The Hidden Life of Trees. Page 5. 20. Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia.

consequently can illustrate my curatorial working practice. Strands of concepts align into each other and amalgamate as amorphous tendrils. This is a conceptual idea that I intend to illustrate with the curatorial actions that will be taken within this process. This brings me back to the ongoing and discursive nature of this conception of connections mentioned earlier in the text: messy and untidy strands that bulk together as a ‘culminated’ work. I asked myself: how did Deleuze and Guattari formulate this way of thinking? As if in answer, I found this quote“We are inscribing this book as a rhizome. It is composed of plateaus. We have given it a circular form, but only for laughs. Each morning we would arouse, and each of us would ask himself what plateau he was going to tackle, inditing five lines here, ten there. We had hallucinatory experiences, we optically canvassed lines, left one plateau and proceeded to another like columns of minute ants.” 21 Is this an inscription form that I can pursue in my critical inditing development? Can I approach individuals to participate in my conceptual formation around the trees, their locations and the spaces of anticipated outcomes, i.e. forests of the future and engendered convivial hubs where there was nothing before? Communication via the World Wide Web and the Wood Wide Web as one unified idea.

Place making Cartography / documentation of the future forests Further to this point, cartography and location is a key element to what I am working towards as part of this project. The tree locations will be mapped using the geolocation app called WHAT3WORDS 22. Anyone who has the app can get a precise ordinance location and can locate the trees that have been planted within a 3m x 3m square area anywhere on the planet. Preparation of the site will entail that the planting area has roughly a meter square cleared of all vegetation. Ideally finished by the addition of a mulch. Another location for the trees is Lunga Estate, on the Craignish peninsula, which is where I spent my childhood and formative years. This location is very close to my heart. I have family and childhood friends here. Could I correspond with a particular individual in this

Googlemaps Location in Lunga of new Community Woodland.

location to communicate as part of my curatorial practice? 21. Gilles Deleuze, Félix Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus: Capitalism and Schizophrenia. Page 102. 22. https://what3words.com/products/what3words-app/ (Last accessed: 17/03/21)

Ethics and Respect So this brings with it several elements to consider. Firstly, the action of finding places for these soil-less and landless diaspora of trees. It is possible to purchase minuscule squares of land on the Dunan Estate23 as a component of a program they have there to reconstitute the ruined castle. By selling minuscule plots (1ft x 1ft) to many people they hope to re-establish the estate. On receiving these oak saplings there was an agreed understanding that the trees will be treated with respect as living beings, with a lot to offer their surroundings. It is important to have an ethical stance. This has led me to research the idea of land ownership and even ideas around granting trees autonomy and rights, as humans have rights. A fascinating example of this is The Tree That Owns Itself. This is a white oak tree that, according to legend, has legal ownership of itself and of all land within eight feet (2.4 m) of its base. The tree, also called the Jackson Oak, is in Athens, Georgia, United States. The original tree, thought to have started life between the mid-16th and late 18th century, fell in 1942. A new tree, however, was grown from one of its acorns in the same location. The current tree is sometimes referred to as the Son of the Tree That Owns Itself.24 Both the original tree and the ‘Son’ have appeared in numerous publications in the USA; the site is a local landmark. This concept could be extended to the trees that are being planted as part of my project. Could I perform a similar action on the Dunan Estate and buy the land for the trees, so that they too could own themselves? I may be one who does not care Ever to have tree bloom or bear. Leaves for smooth and bark for rough, Leaves and bark may be tree enough.25 The next stage of the project will be identifying artists and writers that may be inspired by the project and inviting discourse from them. Artists such as Reiko Goto,26 who orientate herself through an experimental practice of empathic exchange with people, places and things. I am drawn to the work of Goto due to the academic rigour that she places within her practice and the ethical integrity that permeates her work.

23. 24. 25. 26.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunans_Castle (Last accessed: 17/03/21) https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/tree-owns-itself (Last accessed: 17/03/21) Excerpt from Poem Leaves Compared to Flowers. By Robert Frost. About page, https://collinsandgoto.com (Last accessed: 17/03/21)

The location of the Glasgow Sculpture Studio Garden is the distribution point for the trees. Here I have been preparing each individual tree with a root ball of compost in order to ascertain the best possible start to the growing season. The process of finding locations has been a mismatch of organic processes: through word of mouth, friends of friends and existing connections. There may be other digital ways to foster connections. The literal and symbolic connections between the web and the underground network of mycorrhizal links is a visual and conceptual correlation.

The Hunterian project, an opportunity to discuss sustainability I will reference my current work in practical curatorial experience with describing my part in commissioning the artist Rae Yen Song, under the supervision of Hunterian Art Gallery curator Dominic Patterson. I was selected to work with the Hunterian Art Gallery alongside the curator and collaboratively with three other curatorial practice students. This has given me the opportunity to observe the approaches that he takes working directly with artists. I am interested in developing my curatorial practice with an ethical approach to materials and a respectful approach to working with fellow artists and living beings. My curatorial manifesto consists of a slow curatorial approach. Slow Curating is a working practice which has at the core of it, growing relationships with individuals, places and communities. These reciprocal

Happy Happy Leaf, 2018 © Rae Yen Song

relationships that evolve over time are deeply embedded within my art practice and I intend for my curatorial practice to take a similar form. The foundation of the Hunterian Art Gallery is grounded in the historical Hunterian Museum collection. In 1783, William Hunter’s will stipulated that his substantial and varied collections should be donated to the University of Glasgow. Hunter, writing to Dr William Cullen, stated that they were, “to be well and carefully packed up and safely conveyed to Glasgow and delivered to the Principal and

Faculty of the College of Glasgow to whom I give and bequeath the same to be kept and preserved by them and their successors for ever... in such sort, way, manner as ... shall seem most fit and most conducive to the improvement of the students of the said University of Glasgow.” 27 Contemporary artists are invited to contribute to exhibitions in the Gallery dedicated to Contemporary Art. The invited artists may draw upon the collection to inform their practice or explore their own themes within the academic environment. What initially transpired during the process of commissioning Rae Yen Song was that she proposed to create a large inflatable sculpture made from plastic and helium. These are environmentally problematic materials, as she was proposing un-recyclable plastic and helium gas. During the process of costing these materials we discovered that Helium is a finite gas resource whose depletion is leading quickly towards a worldwide shortage.28 Song’s proposal allowed me the opportunity to explore ideas around the environmental impact of single use plastic and discuss this in relation to the project and question the use of these materials. Ultimately, Song has reconsidered and now submitted a proposal that is more environmentally friendly. This is an example of the types of ethical considerations that could surface at any time during my curatorial practice. Artists may want to propose work which could clash with my ecologically focussed practice. Within my ideal practice model, single use plastic would not be considered and if it is possible to recycle I will ensure that it happens. The consideration of carbon footprints and how to off-set any made throughout the project is also a theme I am exploring. One way that businesses and individuals are offsetting their carbon footprints is via tree planting. The experience at the Hunterian Art Gallery has been an opportunity to work with a group of fellow curatorial students to delve into the real life situation of commissioning an artist for the Hunterian Art Gallery. The process of suggesting artists for consideration was an interesting process because we were all approaching the task from our own personal research interests. As there was a very wide group of artists that we had suggested, it was cut down to a short list and ultimately we chose Rae Yen Song. Song’s work has a visually uplifting quality to it, irrespective of the concepts that underpin the work. My intention for the outcome of the commission is that it will be an enjoyable performance for those attending. Due to the current covid crisis it seems it will result in being presented on an online platform.The performance is intended to be family friendly and provide an opportunity for the Hunterian Art Gallery to reach younger audiences.

27. Huntarian home page, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunterian_Museum_and_Art_Gallery (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 28. https://www.zmescience.com/other/feature-post/helium-shortage-geology-feature-08082020/ (Last accessed: 17/03/21)

The discursive approach to the project has been useful, as I hope to develop a slow curation practice, it is useful to recognise the slow and methodical approach to the development of quality artistic productions and build upon this experience to place my curatorial practice within this context.

Reflections upon my Alasdair Gray Archive Placement Archive as legacy The practical experience of working within the Alasdair Gray Archive29 is an opportunity for me to revisit his life and the work that he produced and consider how this can be critically reflected upon to influence my future work. My criteria for the work placement is firstly working on a pedagogical plan for children to access Alasdair Gray’s work. This would comprise of “Wee Gray Activities” which is an information sheet and activities relating

to drawing and creative writing with templates to inspire a combination of ideas and artworks inspired by the book Lanark30. I suggested that the participants could send in their works inspired by Alasdair by email to be added to the growing archive. In addition to this I am helping to catalogue the many prints in the archive. I am particularly interested in focussing on collaborative works between Alasdair and I during his lifetime and how they have been documented within the archive. “The future of wild life depends on humanity, unless we stop destroying it we will destroy the earth on which our own lives depend. We have now only a few years to save it.”31 This quote is a good example of my collaborative work with the Alasdair Gray Archive and the aspects of that which have come to the fore. Namely, the work that we developed together as part of my biodiversity project. Gray developed text to run alongside the artwork and I am interested in seeing how these archive materials from that particular time can be utilised by me to take forward into my ongoing studio practice and research.

29. Alasdair Gray Archive homepage, AlasdairGrayArchive.com (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 30. Weblink to Waterstones webpage, https://www.waterstones.com/book/lanark/alasdair-gray/williamboyd/9781782117148 (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 31. Alasdair Gray and Siobhan Healy Collaboration, Located outside Woodside Health and Care Centre. 2017.

The text that Alasdair and I produced as part of our collaborative work - Biodiversity, has had critical acclaim, including an article in the culture section of the Guardian Newspaper 32. Additionally the Woodside Health and Care Centre won the Health Building Category at the Scottish Design Awards.33 There is another project currently being discussed by Scottish Canals that connects the Woodside Health and Care Centre where an existing poetic and uplifting artwork is sited. This is next to the Claypits, which is a site of protected wild urban area. The intention for the future project is to link with this artwork and extend it up the hill from the Health centre and towards the Claypits. The location is absolutely relevant to my practice as it is right next door to the Glasgow Sculpture Studios garden and will provide a continuation of artwork relating to Biodiversity throughout this area. So to reiterate my themes that I am researching at this point, I am working towards place making through public art projects. This will happen at the Save the Oak planting locations and the locations of the Glasgow Sculpture Studios Garden and also the nearby Claypits, in collaboration with the Alasdair Gray Archive.

Conclusion My masters project will unify the practical curatorial practice that I have collated. Firstly at the Hunterian Project and secondly, the practical archiving experience that I have gained within my placement at The Alasdair Gray Archive. This practical application of my experience will feed into a poetic approach that I intend for my final masters project. Ultimately, this will tap into pre-existing mycorrhizal connections with other humans and living beings and I hope to develop new relationships that could contribute to the project. My intention is to effect genuine change, to approach planting future forests as a radical act of love towards the planet and supplementary as a metaphor for slow space curation.

32. Weblink to primary webpage- https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2018/jul/20/what-to-see-this-week-in-the-uk (Last accessed: 17/03/21) 33. Weblink to primary webpage- https://glasgowcity.hscp.scot/news/woodside-health-and-care-centre-wins-healthbuilding-category-scottish-design-awards (Last accessed: 17/03/21)

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