Queer Botany is hosting a botanical drawing session on Zoom with a focus on queerness and finding inspiration in nature. This event is hosted in partnership with Fringe! Queer Film Festival and presented alongside the screening of (Tending) (to) (Ta), directed by April Lin 林森.
(Tending) (to) (Ta) is a gorgeous experimental film about two beings sharing queer kinship and rooted in ‘tā’, the monosyllabic sound which in Mandarin Chinese encompasses all third person pronouns: 他 (third person male), 她 (third person female), and 它(more-than-human lifeforms and objects). The film and Queer Botany share similar interests in queer perspectives, nature (plants in particular), and nonbinary thinking.
For the drawing session, all participants need is a stable internet connection, a few sheets of paper, and pencil/pen, or whatever media in which they would like to express themselves. All skill levels are welcome. The session is 1 hour and 30 minutes long. There will be an intro on botanical art, queer ecology, and finding inspiration in nature. Participants are encouraged to find their own house plants, fruits or vegetables, or pick flowers or leaves from outside. There will also be images of plants provided. We will warm-up with brief drawing exercises followed by a longer session. We can then share our work and see what others have done. If anyone would like to say anything about their work they can, but are not obliged to do so.
The screening and Q&A for (Tending) (to) (Ta) takes place later the same day at 18:45 at Castle Cinema.
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Part of Fringe! Queer Film & Arts Fest
East London, 9-14 November 2021