Artists responding to the climate crisis during the Cop26 conference often focused on protest art and political calls to action.
But a new work by artist Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg hopes to engage insects first, then humans. “By stepping into the world of other species, can we look back at ourselves and the ways in which we care for nature?” she tells The National.
This week, she unveiled the Pollinator Pathmaker, a 55 metre-long "living artwork", where over 7,000 plants will grow into a colourful and densely packed garden in Cornwall's Eden Project, in the south of England.
The chosen plants are not all bestsellers at the local garden centre, but they are loved by pollinating insects like bees, wasps, moths, beetles and ladybirds. “It’s unlike a garden that humans would design,” she says. “It’s got every colour, shape and size of flowers. It is layered and super dense.”
The aim is to create an environment that would support populations of pollinating insects, who play a vital role in our ecosystems. “The Eden Project asked me to produce a sculpture about pollinators, but it seemed like an opportunity to do something for them instead,” says Ginsberg.
The decline of insect species threatens ecosystems across the globe. “Many plants, including food, rely on pollinating insects to help them reproduce. As these numbers decline and plants don’t get pollinated, we’ll start to see the knock-on effects of ecosystem collapse,” she says.
By designing a garden for pollinators, the idea was to create empathy for them by seeing the world as they do
Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg,
artist
The Pollinator Pathmaker aims to protect these endangered pollinators and bring attention to their plight. “We often hear about the threat to bees. But insect populations across the world are in jeopardy,” she says.
Empathy is at the heart of this project, Ginsberg says. “For pollinators, the world looks and smells quite different. Bees and butterflies see different parts of the colour spectrum to humans. The way they see a garden, its colours and depth, is different to how we see it,” she explains. “By designing a garden for pollinators, the idea was to create empathy for them by seeing the world as they do."
To design the garden, the artist collaborated for over 18 months with beekeepers and horticulturalists from the Eden Project, as well as experts on pollination. With their knowledge, she created a database of compatible plants that are important for pollinators.
Then, she developed an algorithm with the help of a machine-learning expert to generate a bespoke garden design that would suit the climate and soil type and attract local pollinators. “The algorithm serves as a buffer between my biases and tastes for gardens and what pollinators prefer,” she says. “We normally use algorithms in service of our own interests, but we developed an algorithm to benefit other species.”
The algorithm also takes details like insect behaviour into account. “Bees can visit up to 10,000 flowers a day, and they memorise their locations. So it is important for them to take the shortest possible route,” she explains. “But other pollinators like beetles may just randomly forage."
The Pollinator Pathmaker is one of many gardens that the artist hopes will emerge from this project. Members of the public can design their own garden using Pollinator.art, an online tool which the artist also launched this week. The website uses the same algorithm to generate designs for any type of garden in the UK and similar climates in northern Europe. Users will also learn which plants support different pollinators. Digital paintings of plants that appear on the website were drawn by the artist.
To test this, Ginsberg generated and planted her own garden at her home. “I wasn’t choosing how to arrange things, but following a plan and being told what to do knowing that it was going to be beneficial for other species,” she said. “The process gave me the sense that I wasn’t planting a garden for myself.”
Further editions of the Pollinator Pathmaker are being designed for London’s Serpentine Gallery and the Light Art Space in Berlin. Cultural institutions and private collectors are invited to commission their own editions in collaboration with Ginsberg and the Eden Project. This would contribute towards expanding the plant database to other continents and climates.
But is this art, or a useful design tool for gardeners? “For me, good art makes you see the world differently. The aim of this work is to change our perspective on what a garden is and who it is for,” she says.
“Every garden that is planted is a good thing, but the Pollinator Pathmaker is not intended as a solution,” she says. “The end result may be a garden, but if you think of it as an artwork for other species, then it’s a different way of seeing the world, and of thinking about why we make things and who they are for.”
Planes grounded by coronavirus
British Airways: Cancels all direct flights to and from mainland China
Hong Kong-based Cathay Pacific: Cutting capacity to/from mainland China by 50 per cent from Jan. 30
Chicago-based United Airlines: Reducing flights to Beijing, Shanghai, and Hong Kong
Ai Seoul: Suspended all flights to China
Finnair: Suspending flights to Nanjing and Beijing Daxing until the end of March
Indonesia's Lion Air: Suspending all flights to China from February
South Korea's Asiana Airlines, Jeju Air and Jin Air: Suspend all flights
Australia men's Test cricket fixtures 2021/22
One-off Test v Afghanistan:
Nov 27-Dec 1: Blundstone Arena, Hobart
The Ashes v England:
Dec 8-12: 1st Test, Gabba, Brisbane
Dec 16-20: 2nd Test, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (day/night)
Dec 26-30: 3rd Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Jan 5-9, 2022: 4th Test, Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Jan 14-18: 5th Test, Optus Stadium, Perth
The biog
Born: High Wycombe, England
Favourite vehicle: One with solid axels
Favourite camping spot: Anywhere I can get to.
Favourite road trip: My first trip to Kazakhstan-Kyrgyzstan. The desert they have over there is different and the language made it a bit more challenging.
Favourite spot in the UAE: Al Dhafra. It’s unique, natural, inaccessible, unspoilt.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
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Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The Kingfisher Secret
Anonymous, Penguin Books
ARABIAN GULF LEAGUE FIXTURES
Thursday, September 21
Al Dahfra v Sharjah (kick-off 5.35pm)
Al Wasl v Emirates (8.30pm)
Friday, September 22
Dibba v Al Jazira (5.25pm)
Al Nasr v Al Wahda (8.30pm)
Saturday, September 23
Hatta v Al Ain (5.25pm)
Ajman v Shabab Al Ahli (8.30pm)
Fixtures:
Thursday:
Hatta v Al Jazira, 4.55pm
Al Wasl v Dibba, 7.45pm
Friday:
Al Dhafra v Al Nasr, 5.05pm
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai v Al Wahda, 7.45pm
Saturday:
Ajman v Emirates, 4.55pm
Al Ain v Sharjah, 7.45pm
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
UFC Fight Night 2
1am – Early prelims
2am – Prelims
4am-7am – Main card
7:30am-9am – press cons
The Little Things
Directed by: John Lee Hancock
Starring: Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, Jared Leto
Four stars
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
RESULT
Aston Villa 1
Samatta (41')
Manchester City 2
Aguero (20')
Rodri (30')
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
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