Consuming Cut Flowers
Initial Questions -
Q1: Where do our flowers come from?
Q2: How do we create empathy towards other species?
Consuming Cut Flowers
Initial Questions -
Q1: Where do our flowers come from?
Q2: How do we create empathy towards other species?
This exploration was inspired by a previous research project where I aimed to better understand where cut flowers come from.
I then decided to add an additional question, “How do we create empathy towards other species?” I believe that through both understanding the industry, as well as now diving into different perspectives on cut flowers can serve as an intervention of sorts to the way we treat products today. My goal is to spark a connection with the viewer and the “flower”.
Project statement from Fall 2024 semester:
I believe that to better understand the consumer product that is cut flowers, one must map out the untold or unnoticed perspectives of the industry.
Starting from the past, I want to provide the context that many groups of people as well as other species have used flowers for different purposes before they became a product. I then want to look outward, starting with smaller circles, such as asking the people around me about how they use flowers and what existing knowledge they have on where their flowers come from. Once the topic is opened up to the idea that this knowledge is most likely missing, I hope to search for it through interviews with flower sellers and those in the industry since although they aren't growing the flowers, they are essentially the middleman getting the flowers to us. The purpose of this narrative is to serve as a platform for exploring the larger issues of consumer culture, as since many people haven't thought too much on this topic, I see it as an interesting avenue to grasp people's attention. I hope that by the end of this, those who view my work will think differently about how they purchase flowers, and hopefully this extends to other consumer products.