Magical Moss Plants

Part of a series: Where Plants and People Meet
The South London Botanical Institute in collaboration with Queen Mary University of London

About the Workshop

Come join us in this workshop as we delve into the intriguing world of mosses, often ignored but incredibly resilient plants. Mosses have a unique ability to adapt to changes in their environment. We'll explore how we can interact with moss colonies and use technology to enhance their responses. Through this exploration, we aim to foster a deeper connection between humans and plants, providing a new perspective on our relationship with the natural world.

Participants will have the chance to enhance their understanding of mosses and their reactions to shifts in environmental conditions, like moisture and temperature. They will engage in a conversation, exchange their insights, and contribute to a collaborative, interactive artefact.

There will be two sessions to choose from:

10.30am - 12.30pm ALL AGES, 6+ (all children should be accompanied by a parent or carer)

2pm - 4pm Moss lovers ages16 to 106

About the Hosts

Nirit Binyamini Ben-Meir

Nirit is an artist, designer and researcher pursuing her PhD at iGGi - Intelligent Games, Game Intelligence Centre at Queen Mary University of London, exploring More-Than-Human Interactions. She is an associate lecturer in Information Experience Design (IED) at the Royal College of Art. Her research focuses on the integration of living plants into digital systems. She explores the potential of using human-computer-plant interactions to identify current weak points in ecological stewardship.

Erin Robinson

Erin is a PhD researcher at iGGI, University of York, and an experienced artist, interactive installation designer, and music educator specialising in open-ended play in early years’ foundation settings. Her PhD focuses on researching design patterns to support open-ended play experiences in adulthood with interactive installations to support well-being, creativity, physicality and social interaction among players. She combines theory from different interrelated fields, including play design, HCI, sandbox video games and artistic applications of AI to guide creative practice research.

About the Programme

‘Where Plants and People Meet’ is a collaborative programme between the South London Botanical Institute (SLBI) and academics at Queen Mary University of London. It features discussions and workshops focused on plants, people and participation and runs from the 11-29th June 2024. The programme marks the beginning of a two-year reopening process for the SLBI following a long period of closure. ‘Where Plants and People Meet’ is co-curated by Dr. Giulia Carabelli and made possible with support from Queen Mary’s Centre for Public Engagement, Large Grant.