BigSee
Invisible Earthlings
ucdarnet.org/scalablerelations/artist_dacosta.php
Beatriz da Costa, Invisible Earthlings (2009) Invisible EarthlingsInvisible Earthlings is an investigation into the possibilities of relating between humans and members of the lived non-human worlds that we are least likely to recognize as social actors within urban environments: microbes. Microbes, partially defined by their small size and the fact that they are commonly not visible to the human eye, quite literally escape our view and thereby our awareness of their existence. Although most people have some vague notion about the importance of microbes in our ecosystems, microbes commonly only receive our attention when they are perceived to cause problems—"problems" in this case defined as either harmful to human, plant, and animal health, or our material goods. But what type of activities are the numerous relatives of these so-called "harmful microbes" performing while we are walking by, stepping right on top of them, or busily shopping for "mold resistant" building materials? What types of organisms are present, what types were present once but are no longer, and why? Where did they come from, what do we know about them, what type of roles have and are they performing in different historical and geographical settings?.
Invisible Earthlings
ucdarnet.org/scalablerelations/artist_dacosta.php
Beatriz da Costa, Invisible Earthlings (2009) Invisible EarthlingsInvisible Earthlings is an investigation into the possibilities of relating between humans and members of the lived non-human worlds that we are least likely to recognize as social actors within urban environments: microbes. Microbes, partially defined by their small size and the fact that they are commonly not visible to the human eye, quite literally escape our view and thereby our awareness of their existence. Although most people have some vague notion about the importance of microbes in our ecosystems, microbes commonly only receive our attention when they are perceived to cause problems—"problems" in this case defined as either harmful to human, plant, and animal health, or our material goods. But what type of activities are the numerous relatives of these so-called "harmful microbes" performing while we are walking by, stepping right on top of them, or busily shopping for "mold resistant" building materials? What types of organisms are present, what types were present once but are no longer, and why? Where did they come from, what do we know about them, what type of roles have and are they performing in different historical and geographical settings?.