A Sense of Flora explored the inter-relationships between a sense of place and flora – particularly food crops. This Arts Council funded project was a collaboration with Manchester Museum and Rainbow Haven, a charity which supports asylum seekers, refugees and people experiencing displacement. Food is intricately connected to cultural memories, traditions and practices. Participants’ shared their stories through hand-written texts in different languages (Amharic, Arabic, English, Farsi, Kurdish, Tigrinya and Urdu) which accompanied their prints. The project comprised of different phases of activity:
A Sense of Flora digital drawings represent three plants that scientists are researching as potential ‘crops for the future’ which are more resilient to the challenges of climate change. Clouds of microscopic pollens in the background refer to the ongoing scientific research to address global food security and plant biodiversity. The prints include texts: the local names that they are commonly known as, and their classification under the Linnaean system. The local names vary across different regions and are wonderfully evocative of identity and sense of place.