In preparing the Somatic Natural History Archive, I have found it necessary to return to the origin of species, and have begun with an exploration of Charles Darwin’s seminal text on the topic.

The breadth of Darwin’s research often gets lost a behind singular popular discussion of what his theory states about the origin of homo sapiens. However, one finds in the Origin of Species a world of data and analysis that extends beyond the path of apes standing upright. He begins by orienting his readers by providing some examples of genetic variation and evolution that can be seen in the history man’s domestication of livestock. This sets the tone for the entire book, which has Darwin setting up conceptual leaps with solid platforms built on examples his audience has access to.

Darwin explains that species tend to differ in some very clear way in one particular organ or aspect of their being. Upon closer inspection, one finds that this particular aspect relates to a specific aspect of the species’ environment (i.e. a bird’s beak that is shaped in a particular way to catch a certain fish, etc.). For the purposes of the SNHA, this helped me realize that it is important to identify these particular key aspects in my research. Ideally, my entries should highlight these critical aspects, as they will be the most straightforward way to distinguish species in the archive.

Man’s inability to experience geological time, which is the scale that evolution can be perceived, is a major limiting factor in building experiential history with a species’ evolutionary journey. However, when equipped with an understanding of how of a particular species interacts with other species in its genus, we can start to extrapolate a family tree in real time as we encounter related species in a region. This reminds me of a game I used to play. I would look at a parent walking alone with their child on the street, and from the child’s face imagine what the other parent must look like; deductive biomorphometry.

Charles Darwin reminds me that while Experiential Geography relies greatly upon visceral experience, its value as a discipline depends upon visceral experience being explored in concert with theory.

For the past two years I have been devoting my creative energy to harvesting, remembering, and performing movement based on encounters with my environment. I began this pursuit for many reasons, yet the primary motivation was the desire to build a more-detailed, visceral map of the world through direct experience.

My art practice has recently taken another step forward with the development of the Somatic Natural History Archive. My interactions with different environments has become more focussed, as I explore how specific plants and animals express themselves in relationship to their particular environmental contexts.

My motivation to work on this project day-in/day-out is propelled by a single vision. In this vision I have completed Series 1, the embodied history of 10,000 plants and animals. I am roughly 90 years old. I hold in my bones, muscles, nerves, and inexplicable essence the life histories of these organisms. Through my dutiful rendering of their myriad expressions, I have come to understand something essential about the nature of the life that animates them. I have gone through the individual to see the whole.

Perhaps you might find it useful to start at the end of your creative journey. You don’t have to know in this moment how you will get there (I’m not quite sure it would be creative discovery if we knew a priori), but you can cast a vision for what you might feel upon arrival. That feeling can then be held in your daily practice.

In the past several weeks I have been exploring a priming procedure with those who attend my offerings.

Essentially, I state a series of relationships in the hopes of inspiring awareness.

These include physical relationships (remember you are standing on concrete), social (remember you are a citizen of this community), psychological (remember that you are remembering), and environmental (remember that you are breathing oxygen that was produced by the plant life in this room).

I find this web of remembrance awakens the ability to comfortably track multiple strains of information at once.

By holding at once the various layers of our biological, social, environmental persona, I believe we begin to look past the limited nature of these concepts to encounter the complexity of reality.

NOTE: I realize that many of these concepts (for instance, my statement above "environmental persona") are loaded with philosophical and political implications that can not be readily conceptualized in a given moment by an individual. I will go into this in more detail in the Persona chapter of Experiential Geography: http://experientialgeography.wordpress.com/


 

I have been catching up on the writings/theories of Marcel Duchamp and Joseph Beuys.

Each in their own right challenged contemporary artists to reconsider their broader role in society.

I have long believed that movements artists/dancers offer us new visions for how people can relate to each other. The stage can be approached as an incubator for social behavior.

I am creating scores that take what I’m learning from my creative practice out into the world.

Suggestions for remodeling US social interactions
1. Fill long silences during phone conversations with resonant, sonorous humming
2. Repeat in your head “I support you” while others are talking
3. Stand with your palms facing your conversation partner
4. Carry supplies in your bag to help meet the needs of others (extra water, food, reading material)
5. Include members of your community in your first thoughts of the day

Please send me your thoughts, or post them on the public Wiki:
http://socialpractices.wikispaces.com/SocialInteractions

I am in Santa Fe (NM) for a three-month residency at the Santa Fe Art Institute.
I am having a blast exploring the landscape and making new friends.
I am also learning about how my art practice does and does not integrate with the visual arts world.
I am learning the different between performance art and performing arts. Differences in approaches to the material of the body, time, and historical context.
I am working with a drawing class on the College of Santa Fe
I am learning about the magic of 2D composition.
I am experiencing agism and the condescension that can emanate from academically-trained artists.
I am learning the difference between lower case ‘i’ and capital ‘I’. The impulses that are generated by me vs. the impulses that are generated by my community and “life force”.
I am looking for ways to make socially and environmentally responsible art while still exploring my personal voice and artistic perspective.
This month I will be posting thoughts and questions. Topics will include: How do we construct the structures we need to grow? How can movement artists create and offer communities new ways of being in the world? How can arts management/business models assist in the creative process?
I look forward to sharing.