Chronomicroscopy: exploring the choreographies of non-humans
Symposium:
Title:
- Chronomicroscopy: exploring the choreographies of non-humans
Organiser/Presenter(s):
Statement:
Chronomicroscopy is a workshop on microbes and movement, exploring the choreographies of microbial non-humans and building perceptive and affective relationships through mediation. Inspired by late nineteenth century investigations into chronophotography, capturing the movement of animals in motion over time (Muybridge, Marey), as well as the history of microcinema, videographing and enlarging the microcosmos, the workshop proposes to capture fragments of local microbial dances. Through sample collection and microscopy, participants will find signatures of non-human movement in the ecology of microbial life.
Following her endosymbiotic theory, Lynn Margulis stated that all life on earth is inherently microbial and symbiotic. Lesser known is that she was an avid microscopist, expert in protozoa, and spent hours educating students in the art of looking and observing. Similarly, this workshop aims to foster a sense of wonder, awe, attention, being with microbes. Microbes are often recognized by their morphology, or identified using tools like genetics, but paying attention to their motion patterns allows for new ways of looking and relating with their presence. This workshop proposes an exploration in four parts; first, gathering site-specific water samples in the surroundings of the conference venue. Second, learning to use microscopic setups as an art medium. Third, recognizing and naming specific microbes within the ecologies. Fourth, generating images and videos portraying the beauty of microperformativities.
