Seed Simulation Laboratory and Mission Nucleus

On view at Urban Arts Space

The Seed Simulation Laboratory (SSL) and Mission Nucleus is an interactive art installation, performance set, and viewing room; A speculative entity situated within The Department of Planetary Futures wherein collaborative Principal Investigators, or Co-Pilots, investigate seed pods as tiny survival methodologies through embodied replication.

Humans often imagine themselves as separate from nature, enacting harmful practices of domination as opposed to living in reciprocity with the natural world. How might our relationships with imagined planetary futures be more fruitful if they begin from a process of listening to and drawing from the wisdom of plants? How might humans and nature be better served collectively if humans practice plant-based survival tactics?

Co-Pilots will engage in a series of experiments analyzing seed pod movements and translating them into both planned and improvisational human movements.

What are the human bodily limitations in attempts to practice seed dispersal mechanisms as a human survival tactic? Where might humor and joy be found in the practice of recognizing human limitations in relationship to nature, as opposed to domination?

The Mission Nucleus serves as a Control Room or Viewing Station, where performance and experiment documentation come together in a multichannel video and sound experience. 

Summer Series is a multi-venue program that showcases short- and long-term projects such as gallery exhibitions, performances, audience participatory work, discussions, research demos and more. This series encourages collaboration, multidisciplinary approaches and seeks ideas that foster conversations, relationships, or careers, that represent diverse perspectives.