Join the M at Lower Phalen Creek Project’s 5th annual Pollinator Festival
Come early for ReNew Earth Running’s Haulin’ Pollen 5k (https://bit.ly/3AO25Il) and stay for the full slate of activities starting at 11:00 A.M.!
We’ll have live music, kid-friendly pollinator education, plant walks, a Dakota-owned food truck, art-making, Native plant giveaways, face painting, and more.
Performances by Jada Lynn, Hobawea Nahish and Downtown Jada Brown (NOON – 1:30pm)!
Activities from: Minnesota Dragonfly Society, Monarch Joint Venture, Pollinate Minnesota, Babycake’s Book Stack, Xerces Society, Mississippi Park Connection, The Bell Museum, Friends of the Mississippi River, University of Minnesota Bee Squad, Minnesota Historical Society, Friends of Swede Hollow, Ramsey-Washington Metro Watershed District, and Minnesota Museum of American Art and more!
Vendors: Wanna Wota (Dakota owned food truck), Lakota Made (Indigenous-made plant medicines and personal care products), Josef Reiter (Anishinaabe jeweler) and Tanaǧidaŋ To Wiŋ (Indigenous author).
The M’s activity is designed by Zamara Cuyun.
Seed Art: Legacy, Permanence and Ephemera
Monarch butterflies have now been placed on the endangered species list. You might be wondering – how does that connect to art?
Art-making is an act of creation and societal and cultural attitudes influence how we think about the permanence, or impermanence, of artwork. Oftentimes, the things we make require the use of materials that are unsustainable and destructive to our environment – plastics, foams, synthetic fibers and dye. If we think about art-making as an act of creation, we have a responsibility to explore new ways to create.
Our goal with this project will be to create a work of art that, when disposed of, will return to the earth… and will be constructive, rather than destructive, to its final “home” and the pollinators that inhabit that space.
On a sheet of compostable seed-embedded paper, you will create your own unique piece of seed art, incorporating a selection of found natural materials such as seeds, flower petals, and leaves. Enjoy your art piece, share it with friends, or gift it to someone. When the finished piece has fulfilled its purpose, it can then be planted in a pot or in the garden to continue in the natural life cycle.
As you create your seed art, consider the following:
What is our goal in making art?
Do we want artwork to last forever?
What is the impact of our art-making on the planet?
Legacy and ephemera: What does “legacy” mean to you? Is it the same as permanence?
What will our legacy be? What actions will that require?
