Microbes are constantly moving, hesitating, vibrating, spawning possibilities within a spectrum of fuzzy values.
Serres, Michel (2007) The Parasite. University of Minnesota Press
Endosymbiosis is a major driver in the evolution of many species. Endosymbiotic Love is the evolution of respect for other species; progressing from placing the human at the centre of things.
All practitioners involved have played their part to foster rich complex creative relationships, whether their disciplines are science, performance art or both. We want scientists and artists to share the love that is microbial. We go beyond the commensal to develop our own mutually beneficial interactions, creating synergistic relationships where we all learn, depend and become a part of each other, something more than the sum of our separate entities.
Ignited by playful conversations between Yasmine & Hwa Young at Viv and Rod’s BBQ, meetups in art galleries and makerspaces, microorganism matchmaking gossip on Instagram and lockdown make up lessons over the internet, we have brought together different forms of knowledge making and a synergy of perspectives in representing our understanding of 12 of our microscopic collaborators.
We want alliances and solidarity across science & art to reveal the intimate relationships between the human, non-human and the inhumane. Our diverse team of human animals have explored themes of symbiotic and mutualistic relationships, the diversity of gender, reproduction, sexual orientation and social behaviour in both microorganisms and humans. The intention is that this nurtures an understanding of others regardless of species and the wider struggles for representation.
We use a familiar domestic object; a wall calendar as a familiar space to reflect on – for some – unfamiliar worlds.
This project was pulled through three countries during new critical relations with the SARS-CoV-2 virus that captures just some of the microbiological research, feminist and queer perspectives we have shared in a creative and sometimes provocative way. Like all organisms we had to adapt to continually changing circumstances and reflect on what is essential: love, kinship and care as a way of knowing and being.
Let the calendar live through the year with you and yours and join us in the evolution of Endosymbiotic Love.