Collaborative Installation
2024

There exists a widespread paranoia in the UK concerning non-native plant species that have made the soil of this country their homeland. Ironically, a large fraction of such flora first arrived in the country in the trail of colonial expeditions. In this sense, their conflicted existence in the fabric of floral diversity reflects the current immigration crisis in the political domain of human diversity. The artwork upholds this connection as a metaphor to comment on the place, dignity and safety of migrant populations in the United Kingdom.
Chloe Smith and Bonobithi Biswas bring together, through the patterns of their individual journeys, the very essence of the diversity they hope to voice through their collaborative work. Chloe, a citizen of the UK and a native to the Suffolk region brings to the table an in-depth understanding of the country’s current socio-political scenario and a knowledge of the local biodiversity of Suffolk. On the other hand, Bonobithi, an Indian citizen and resident of Paris, France, ushers elements of a lived transgenerational migrant experience, and the cultural nuances of being “the outsider” in Suffolk. This project is the child of their shared love for flowers, and the vision of an inclusive world.
The process of creation of the Emergency Shelter for Non-Native Flowers has been a deeply therapeutic one. The duo explored the neighbourhood and the glorious summer bloom of Halesworth, collecting fallen flowers, identifying native and non-native species. The dyeing of the fabric with the flowers was a unique community-centric process, with the resident and mentor artists at The Cut joining the duo in staining the fabric with the floral pigments. This reinforced the sense of fraternity and safety that is core to the term “shelter” in its broadest sense.
The design of the structure reflects the dichotomy of the migrant experience. While at first sight it appears to resemble a simple tent-like structure, a closer look reveals that one end of the shelter leans on and is held up the wall. The structure is a commentary on how the condition of migrants and immigration policy are dependent on the power structures of political hierarchy, and in the end, the very structure they depend on for shelter makes the shelter unstable.
The artwork is participatory; it is an invitation to the viewer to immerse in a deeply intimate experience with the space of the shelter. Only one person is encouraged to enter at a time. The shelter protects imagined relics of non-native flowers, including preserved specimens, visual poetry, and scientific data disproving the fear of “invasion” around such species. The fabric itself is transformed into a narrative of the beauty of diversity and co-existence. The patches left undyed act as a stark contrast to uphold the bleakness of a country, a world that in its lust for homogeneity, forgets the socio-economic and cultural richness that a demographic variety invites.