SNAKE 8"x 10" print

“Science asks us to learn about organisms. Traditional knowledge asks us to learn from them”.

-Robin Wall Kimmerer

This artwork is from a 2022 wall calendar project and is exploring how change happens in the more-than-human world. What is the pace? What is the scale? The catalysts, the intelligence, the resources? The plants and animals are powerful teachers and offer abundant examples of how, specifically, to practice a cooperative, interconnected life. Here I explore examples of Pollination (sharing), Metamorphosis (forming), Germination (growing), and Decomposition (Dying). Each monthly page includes a few questions about how these examples might translate to human experiences.

Decomposition: DEATH. SNAKE SHEDDING SKIN. ECDYSIS. Snakes shed their skin because when they grow, their skin does not. This can happen as frequently as once a month depending on the snake’s species, age, environment, and nutritional health. The process can help remove parasites that may have attached to their old skin. Have you or would you shed something that no longer served you in order to continue growing?