Serpentine Podcast

How can botanical knowledge support practices of ecological and personal healing? In episode 4: By Leaves We Listen, hosts Victoria Sin and Lucia Pietroiusti are joined by Emma Nicolson, Head of Creative Programmes at the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh. Emma moderates a roundtable with artists Keg de Souza, Nabihah Iqbal and botanist Greg Kenicer. Featuring sound works by Rachel Pimm and Keg de Souza. Image: 2019, Rachel Pimm, (The Great Exhibition of) The Works of Cash Crops. https://www.blackvisionsmn.org/ https://blacklivesmatter.com/ https://www.communityjusticeexchange.org/nbfn-directory https://www.gofundme.com/f/ukblm-fund? The episode is a programming collaboration between Serpentine and Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh. Back to Earth is supported by Outset Partners’ Grant. This episode was produced by Katie Callin at Reduced Listening.

In this thought-provoking discussion, artist Zadie Xa shares her captivating sound piece that intertwines inherited wisdom and the voices of grandmothers and whales. The Climate Symphony group, composed of innovative creators, elaborates on their work translating data from fossil fuel extraction into a powerful auditory experience. Topics range from the significance of matriarchal wisdom in human and orca societies to the urgent need for artistic intervention in climate narratives. The conversation beautifully blends art, ecology, and the quest for a more empathetic future.

In Episode 3, hosts Victoria Sin & Lucia Pietroiusti dive into one of the core ecological principles of Back to Earth: we are all interconnected, smaller pieces of a larger whole. Featuring conversations with Brian Eno and Hans Ulrich Obrist, and Elizabeth Povinelli of Karrabing Film Collective, as well as sound works by Tabita Rezaire and clips from Karrabing’s 2018 film, The Mermaids, or Aiden in Wonderland. Image: Tabita Rezaire, Lubricate Coil Engine, 2017.  Back to Earth is supported by Outset Partners’ Grant. This episode was produced by Katie Callin at Reduced Listening.

How are artists developing campaigns for the Earth? How can an artwork reconnect us with the environment? Can we "feel" the speed of climate change, or hear the sounds of a seed? Episode 2, hosts Victoria Sin & Lucia Pietroiusti welcome Ayesha Tan Jones, James Bridle & Cecilia Vicuña, three artists participating in Back to Earth, to begin to sow the seeds of their multifaceted campaigns. Image: Semiya/Seed Songs, Cecilia Vicuña, 2015.  Back to Earth is supported by Outset Partners’ Grant. This episode was produced by Katie Callin at Reduced Listening.

How can art respond to the climate emergency? How can society collectively self-transform? How can an arts institution contribute to discourse around the climate crisis in a meaningful way? Hosts Victoria Sin and Lucia Pietroiusti welcome the new series with Hans Ulrich Obrist, Suzanne Dhaliwal, Cooking Sections, students from the RCA and sound works by Brian Eno, to take things Back to Earth. Image: The Mermaids, Karrabing Film Collective 2018. Back to Earth is supported by Outset Partners’ Grant. This episode was produced by Katie Callin at Reduced Listening. This episode was produced by Katie Callin at Reduced Listening.

Roots move towards water. Leaves grow towards the sun. Plants don’t have neurons… Does it matter? How else can they remember, and learn from their experiences? We consider plant intelligence, and what we mean when we talk about intelligence in the first place. Join us in thinking with plants.

Ancient Greeks used orchids and lettuce to enhance and suppress sexual appetite. Thinking beyond plants as a backdrop or decoration, what do they teach us about sex and desire? Reflecting on the long and deep relationship between botany, eroticism, agriculture and myth, this episode will make you see, hear and feel plants like never before.

Curators for Serpentine Projects and Serpentine Education - Amal Khalaf and Alex Thorp bring us sounds from their one-day forum at Conway Hall in London, Rights to the City?. We hear artists, activists and educators from across the world considering how artists, institutions and people can transform society. Hosts: Amal Khalaf & Alex Thorp Production: Paul Smith for Reduced Listening Mixing: Steve Wyatt

What new ecological insights can be gained from thinking of the planet as an organism in itself? As humans, we have a need to simplify our surroundings to understand them. How can we communicate the complexity of the world in a way we understand, without losing its meaning?

Lucia Pietrojusti, world-famous podcast co-host, and Philippo Ramos, interdisciplinary researcher, join forces with educator Phoebe Tickell and anthropologist Anna Singh, who blends art with ecology. They delve into the fascinating relationship between humans and the countless microbes within us, challenging traditional notions of individuality. The conversation sparks philosophical insights about interspecies communication and the interconnectedness of life, from puffer fish dances to urban ecosystems, emphasizing our symbiotic ties with the natural world.