14 May 2022 | New Scientist | 31Vital connection
THE complexity, community
and precarity of the planet are
highlighted in these works
from Our Time on Earth, a new
exhibition at the Barbican Centre
in London. The show aims to
“ignite a sense of hope and
courage, and to shift people’s
mindsets to reconnect with the
natural world”, says co-curator
Luke Kemp.
The image at far left is a still
from a video called Sanctuary of
the Unseen Forest, a collaboration
between immersive art collective
Marshmallow Laser Feast, Andres
Roberts – co-founder of The Bio-
Leadership Project – and artist
James Bulley. It explores our
intimate connection with trees
and addresses “plant blindness”,
a human tendency to ignore
plants in favour of animals.
The top-right image is a
video still from Planet City, a film
directed by architect Liam Young
that imagines a “hyper-dense”
city of 10 billion people, allowing
the rest of the world to be
reclaimed by the wild. It shows a
speculative solution for feeding
the city’s population.
Bottom right is an image from
digital art installation Life Forces
by art duo Tin & Ed, which aims
to provide a portal to nature by
using human body tracking to
allow visitors to interact with
digital landscapes.
The two small images are
shots of Sharing Prosperity, a
gaming experience created by
DVTK in collaboration with the
Institute for Global Prosperity at
University College London. Set in
the near future, the game explores
how collaboration could help the
planet to flourish.
Our Time on Earth is on at the
Barbican Centre until 29 August. ❚Gege LiLIA
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