What are our hopes for relationship with this land in 150 years?
Overview: FloARra creates a speculative future in which our campus is reinhabited with native plants. Participants grow plants in this scene by scanning QR codes placed on wooden silhouettes of native flora across campus. By blending technology, art, and ecology, FloARra immerses the campus community in a practice that highlights possibilities in this landscape. The multi-user participatory format encourages us to embody the activity and mindset of planting native species and all the complexities of this practice.
You will find 10 additional plant silhouettes scattered across campus. When you scan the QR code a plant of that variety will be placed on this screen. You can also view this scene at FloARra.art As the plants grow larger over time and eventually disappear and hopefully new ones will crop up in their place if you tend to this landscape.
Gratitude: The project was made possible through the creative labor of funded undergraduate students: Argo Mendoza-Jones, Shawn Chov, Aimi Hettinger, and Ella Kane. It was fiscally supported by the Center for Scholarly and Creative Excellence’s Collaboration Grant. Plant selection was informed by conversations with the Gun Lake Tribe and Rob Larson (GVSU Natural Resource Management faculty and Chairman of the Huron Band of Potawatomi); the selection emphasizes both ecological and cultural significance. We are glad for native plants and people who persisted through land disposition and share their story.
Possible Futures: As native species such as Pawpaw, Paper Birch, and Black Ash decline, and culturally significant plants like Manoomin (wild rice) were eradicated long ago, FloARra envisions a way forward. The project encourages practices like removing invasive landscaping plants while increasing native species with deep root systems that facilitate source point drainage and groundwater retention. By making deep ecology a collective and creative act, FloARra aims to spark an ongoing dialogue about environmental stewardship, cultural memory, and regenerative possibilities for the campus community and connect more deeply with parallel efforts on campus like GVSU’s Arboretum AR project.