Sun Eaters

This note was written in collaboration with Grace Grothaus, leader of Sun Eaters project

Artist Grace Grothaus shows people how trees flow with hidden energy. She designed branches which reveal bioelectric currents inside them for her installation Sun Eaters.

Project Description

Sun Eaters by Grace Grothaus uses custom electronics to visualize bioelectricity as light. A grove of trees at the Toronto Botanical Garden are equipped with branches that artist Grothaus created to enable people to both see and feel a tree’s “heartbeat”. At several touch stations visitors can hold the branches she made, which contain sensors that pick up the bioelectric rhythms of each tree. The installation shows the electrical patterns unique to each tree, a constantly shifting combination of internal factors including the tree's overall health, daily metabolic processes, and state of hydration. Their pulsing rhythms are also influenced heavily by external environmental cues such as time of day, season, and the lunar cycle. Grothaus is interested in creating artworks that facilitate points of connection between humans and the more-than-human natural world. “I am investigating whether artworks can act as an interface for understanding ecological processes,” says Grothaus. She hopes that the installation will prompt a deeper appreciation of trees and a means of seeing them as unique individuals, similar to how we see each other.

For more information about the project, click here.

Reflection on the project

In reflection, future iterations of this installation should have volunteers stationed by the works to help direct visitors on how to interact and more importantly that they can interact with the art. Signage, at a busy festival event, is not enough by itself. In summary, earlier communication strategies which worked well in quiet gallery settings, didn't translate to a festival setting as well as intended.

Community

People who are open to curiosity regarding plants, art, and the world around them.

Acknowledgements

Grothaus is grateful to The Qualcomm Institute and ICA in San Diego for underwriting the initial creation of Sun Eaters, as well as Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris, York University and the City of Toronto, for their support in its evolution.

For questions on this project, please contact lead artist, Grace Grothaus (she/her) at gracegrothaus@gmail.com - website: www.gracegrothaus.com

Launch date: September 23, 2023 (the September 23rd installation date is the latest iteration of the Sun Eaters project which began in 2019.)

Relevant fields of practice: Digital Arts

Additional Keywords: installation; electronics; plants; art; interactivity; biodata; environment

Total Budget: Less than $50,000

Funding Type and Partnerships: Municipal; Universities

This note is part of interConnect. If you are the content owner or the organization concerned and would like to take control of ownership of the note, write to IMAA at info@imaa.ca.