Gardening metaphors for growth and development
Words Rise into the Air (Mixed Media)
The painting featured at the top of this blog post was inspired by a passing comment in a workshop I facilitated in April, as part of the Early Career Researchers’ (ECR) Sustainability Training School (STS) Global at the University of Warwick. Some background first before I get to the comment that served as inspiration.
This is the second year I have supported this wonderful initiative, led by Professor Elena Korosteleva that brings together researchers from all over the world to work on environmental and sustainability initiatives. My role in the Training School was to provide a workshop that would achieve two things; First, it was my job to get people working together in teams, agreeing a common focus and language to support the development of team projects and (perhaps) future funding bids. Second, the workshop needed to get participants thinking creatively about how to address those problems. So, what approach did I adopt? Yes, you have probably guessed already...In a passing remark to my boss recently I quipped 'Is there no question to which collage is not the answer?'. So collage provided the method for the workshop!
Having hosted these workshops for two years running, I notice how my practice has changed and developed. What started with old magazines (more photo montage, than collage) has now expanded to bring in textured materials (feathers, corrugated paper) and bright 'magpie' objects that can just about be stuck down. What began as an intuitive selecting, sticking and then presenting what it all means, now has a structured reflection framework - written and verbal - I am writing an article about this at the moment because I think it helps makers dig into the meaning of it all in a more structured way and I think it could help others make sense of the process of collage for thinking.
A really nice element of design in this year's workshop was that some of last year's participants were invited back to support the new groups, providing support and advice, taking pictures (and film making) and being all round champions for the initiative and the joyful atmosphere in the room. During a lull in the collage-making activity, one of last year's participants turned to me and said how much they had enjoyed this workshop last year. They said, "What you have done is plant seeds in all of us". I was taken aback by the comment. I resisted the urge to ask them to clarify or justify, and I definitely did not do a faux humble face (lol). I just accepted the statement. I had a passing moment of doubt. Doubting them. Doubting myself. The comment sat with me until I picked up a pen and did a quick sketch...
Following the workshop, I was then approached to do some work for a Poetry and Wellbeing Day in the Faculty of the Arts that is taking place in June, as a way to showcase The Public Laundry Project. I had intended to work up this sketch into something more 'painterly' but it just felt 'too small'. I decided instead to capture an aerial photograph of land just south of the University, with words appearing through the clouds. The words were not intended to be a poem, but they have ended up as a kind of poem, reflecting the pleasure and enjoyment I have had being part of conversations about research - both the topical - the stuff about doing research, and the kinds of research people are engaged in, and the infrastructure that sits around research and researchers. The painting is my biggest to date, being 3' x 3'. It felt as though it needed to be big, because the impact of that passing comment felt big at the time.
Ideas ARE like seeds that get passed from person to person, nurtured in different ways and in different circumstances, with new hybrids appearing all over the place. I feel really honoured that I am part of this.
