Micro-Landscapes of the Anthropocene

The Art of Plantscendence

During the current pandemic, the set of rules for lockdown and social distancing has tied down many born to move around. Given arms and hands for hugging and greeting, legs for running and walking, humans have come across not only a health crisis but a Socialdemic. Stuck in our homes now foreign and suffocating, we envy those that roam freely. We turn our gaze to our freedom once taken for granted and begin to appreciate the minuscule details, things we have never noticed, objects that were lost now found and the discovery of life. Literally. 



Plantscendence: Single child of Father; Plant and Mother;Transcendence 
1. Noun.The green movement of botany or plants 
2. Noun. A certain trajectory into the unknown. 
Ommitance: Ran; past tense of Run, move at a speed faster than a walk, never having both or all the feet on the ground at the same time

Plantscendence stems from the idea of vegetal freedom and liberty, solely existing for itself and providing for nothing. The concept is fused with plant mobility and transportation. The active state of plants capable of moving without the traditional and overrated use of limbs seems terrifying yet exciting. The ascendence of plants by travelling with wind, animal excrement or even stuck on the bottom of ones shoe is trouble for anti-bio forces policing the field. This delicate and sly art form of plant escapism cannot be mimicked by all and exclusive to spore-bearing plants. Some spores are equipped with sails, umbrella-like, it is unsure of its destination but certain of its soft landing. 



It is humorous how "Vegetable state" negatively connotes to the still and immobile state of inactive beings. Aristotle's input on his theory through De Anima and illustrates three types of plant movement; modification of its state, movement of growing and the eventual decay (Marder). This ancient acknowledgment and record of Plantscendence is labelled toxic by Michael Marder and he advocates for a modern revamped interpretation. The discovery of plant life nestled comfortably in a rusty lock challenges conventional notions on nature, found in places we least expect, our surprise and astonishment may seem a little belittling or offensive to our natural counterparts. 


"Lungs of the Planet" (Michael Marder) 
It is no coincidence, the genetic makeup of our respiratory system poses uncanny resemblance to plant roots. The willing and unwilling symbiotic relationship between humans and nature ultimately sustain and prolong human existence. The art form of Plantscendence employ cognitive abilities such as noises transmitted through vibrations, a sense of awareness from physical contact from neighbours and echolocation from emitting 'clicking sounds' to paint a soundscape of their surrounding (Gagliano). Their form of movement and communication demonstrate shared similarities to humans. Although not co-dependent of humans and rather a compromisation, oxygen is traded with the botany; its journey down the trachea and into the bronchus allows a temporary merging of plant and human, the inhalation of oxygen is one of the many art forms of Plantscendence. 

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