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Action & Reflection

Flowers and beyond

This action started with a flower bouquet that I had gotten a few weeks ago. As a plant/flower lover, having flowers has been always a blessing and a curse. I obviously enjoy their lively presence in my space, but when they dry out I feel like they’ve gone to waste in a way. This time, I decided to take action, and explore the notion that is it really the end of their life cycle? Can I commemorate their lives?

Picture of the bouquet when I got it

Part 1: Forgotten knowledge

In the beginning, I sorted each flower into different bundles to be able to see them individually. Starting with Alstroemeria (aka Lily of the Incas), I was wondering about the seeds and the ability to regrow flowers from their dried remainings. It felt like a science class for me. I had to google and visit many websites to figure out the basic knowledge regarding bringing up these flowers. Thanks to a kind old gardener on YouTube, I learned how to extract seeds from my Alestromerias. Although I’m not sure they’re capable of sprouting, I kept them away and might try planting them later.

Reflection: This action was really fun and yet frustrating. I thought to myself, why should I search so much to find out about this kind of information? Why does it feel “nostalgic” and not normal to investigate different elements of a plant? Aren’t we like companions for hundreds of years, co-habiting on the Earth? I use an app to detect plants because I can’t do it on my own. It is a vast and forgotten knowledge, and I definitely can’t learn it overnight. It takes years of being exposed to this wisdom for it to actually solidify. What would it be like if my generation were brought up with a sense of inherent knowledge for our surroundings? How would it have changed our ontology?

Part 2: Exploring natural dyes + crafts

As I was looking at dried petals, I wondered if I could extract colors from them. Flowers are vibrant because of their distinct colors and forms, can I get that color out? In my home, with no special equipment? It was my first ever attempt to work with natural dyes so I just went with it and decided to put a piece of fabric in the mix to dye it as well.

I wanted to create something with what I had. Can it be seen as a form of co-creation with nature? It might look like that I’m interfering with my actions. But I was looking for a forgotten bond, and I wanted to put nature forward, in a way that my human presence wouldn’t take over the result.

Moving forward to the daisies, I tried to look for another method to extract colors. As I was searching, hammering was introduced as a way to manually print the flowers on another surface. This looked and felt a bit aggressive to do, but after I did it, the transformed colors and forms seemed like a delicate watercolor painting.

Again, I didn’t want to stop there, and I wanted to add something to this piece of cloth. I stitched some patterns and after a very unplanned exploration, I ended up making a small envelope shaped bag.

Part 3: Papermaking

I was thinking what else can I do? And as I was searching for inspiration, the idea of incorporating dried petals in recycled papers seemed lovely. Again, with zero knowledge in papermaking (also zero equipment), I went ahead and attempted to make all sorts of papers with the dried leaves and flowers I had.

Seeing my notes and used papers mixed with natural elements, I felt like I created something more than just papers. My memories were intertwined with petals and leaves, and perhaps their memories with mine.

Part 4: Untitled object

Since the beginning of this course, I’ve been randomly collecting broken branches. This one that I had picked in my grandpa’s garden stood out to me suddenly. While it had nothing to do with flowers, I decided to make something with it.

This tree was planted by my grandpa many years ago. Before I was born. As I hold it, I connect with the life it had led before reaching me. I’m celebrating its life and I’m thankful for it.

What is this object? It could be a spiritual element. It represents nature plus me, a human. It could resemble a flower too in a way. These are all assumptions and ideas that I’m referring to this object. Does making with nature holds a certain spiritual layer to it? Or I, as the one whose interfering, can add it? Are natural materials/elements just sources for our creation? This has been the case in the industry for sure. But thinking about their life cycle, how should we really treat them? Do we appreciate them enough for giving us means and resources? Do we see their past and their future? Do we think about their life journey and stories?

Part 5: “Flower arrangement”

Final Reflection

In this action, I explored two different paths. First, the materiality of natural elements and recognizing my little knowledge of them. What are they made of? How do they thrive? What happens when they die? Can we facilitate and make them continue their lives in another format, in terms of sustainability?

While I was exploring this, I came across this project about flower waste. An Indian entrepreneur managed to find a colorful solution for tons of flowers that went to waste in his city. He ended up upcycling the remaining flowers and offsetting a significant amount of pollution, not to mention the numerous jobs he created through this process.

The next path I explored was basically contemplating on my emotional bond with these natural elements. How do they affect me and how can I appreciate them. The environment I grew up in has definitely shaped my perception of “Nature”. Living in an urban city, with minimum green areas, I have been deprived of the concept of nature. For me, going to the forest or the sea requires days of planning, spending money, and putting so much effort. As a result, nature always seemed distant and sacred. But I’m trying to redefine that relationship. The flowers I get from a local florist is “nature” as well. Although it has traveled and is somehow displaced, it is up to me to see it as a decorative and now lifeless object, or a natural being that has lived and made stories before getting in my hands. The tree in front of my house is not a single tree in the middle of a street, it is a very natural element thriving which happens to be surrounded by humans’ habitat, and plays an important role for other animals I don’t necessarily notice.

What is presumed as “nature” for people living in urban cities? How accurate is it? Has the traditional definition of “nature” made us strangers to the natural elements in our environment?

What is the root of feeling disconnected from nature? What other factors other than accessibility are involved? The forgotten knowledge, the definition of nature, and perhaps digitalization?

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