NOUS / OTRXS: La Cosecha

Presenting this extended exhibition over two seasons at AXENÉO7 made it possible to present the full cycle of these seeds under the influence of the radio transmissions in their environment in Hull. Now, as you enter the gallery, the seeds have become plants that have bred flowers, fruit, and new stories. As their cycle ends, La Cosecha begins; we will harvest their gifts, gathering, eating, and transforming the plants to begin their next season when the snow begins to thaw.

This cycle of regeneration is reflected in the gallery through the reuse of the soil from the previous years mixed with new soil from the surrounding region. The sediments of the soil carry with them the compost of previous seasons and the stories of those seeds. These ancestors are present in the plants you witness in the gallery and on the woodchips you walk on. They are also present in the rocks around the gallery and on the turntables. Rocks are also our ancestors, as they preserve the stories of the planet Earth in their sediments. These stories are not ones our ears can easily decipher. By giving voice to the rocks, we may not understand their stories, but their presence can be felt. 

I came to these seeds thinking I could change them, but they are too wise, and I did not understand their capacity as teachers, transmitters, and community builders.  For some of these seeds, this is our second cycle together; for others, we are just getting to know each other. As a result, I was hesitant to leave them in Gatineau at first, but they did what they do and attracted a fellow spirit, Rodrigo, to care for them. They also caught the attention of Thị Rớt, a Vietnamese woman in the community garden who always greeted me with a smile, whose curiosity about my garden led to sharing tips with me for warding off squirrels. On my walks to and from the garden, I also met the 91-year-old Khalid, who brought my attention to the song of the Blue-headed Vireo, a musical songbird who sang as I painted the tires for the front garden. 

It is through these experiences that I understand the relationship between plants and humans. We must nurture them to nourish ourselves. In doing so, we become one, supporting each other in surviving the changing climate. We must care for them as we do a family member, as they are our past, our present, and our future relatives.

With these thoughts in mind, observe and interact with these plants as an invitation, an invitation to not knowing, to getting lost in the care of a more-than-human being. 

Listen to them.

Ask them questions.

Observe in yourself what comes: joy, confusion, frustration, confidence? 

I found my interactions with them nurtured bonds, stories, and knowledge of realms beyond my own. What have they shared with you, and you with them?

— Text by Martín Rodríguez