Katie Cunningham
Noticing the Minutiae
The art of noticing is a radical act.
How can we care about things if we don’t notice them? Life exists on multiple scales and speeds, but many of us are tuned into interactions that occur on the human point on these scales. Moss and lichen are ‘pioneer species’ – through their cycles of birth, life, and death across deep time, they begin to create foundation soils in which other species can grow. As ecosystem engineers of microhabitats, could they facilitate connection to the more-than-human and more-than-individual world? If we can learn to read lichen, they could teach us about air quality which could inform planning considerations and sound alarms that may benefit all life. But more than this, do we need to still our own languages to learn the languages of non-humans? Can we reconnect our sense of place by noticing them? Are there ways that we can build empathy and connection with them, to see our mutual entanglement(s)?
If you would like to see more of Katie's work, please visit her website at: www.katieleaf.co.uk
