Pollinator Pathmaker is a campaign to create art for pollinators, planted and cared for by humans. We want to change how we see gardens and who we make them for. Artist Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg, is behind this unique ‘pollinator’ artwork commissioned by the Eden Project, Cornwall, UK.
Bees, butterflies, moths, wasps, beetles and other pollinators are essential for plants to reproduce and for our ecosystems to thrive. But human-induced habitat loss, pesticides, invasive species and climate change are causing a terrifying decline in their populations around the world.
Without pollinators, many plants cannot reproduce and produce seeds. Without seeds, many of the trees, flowers and crops we rely on would not exist. Plants are vital to the survival of life on Earth, including us. How and what we plant matters, so Ginsberg asked: What would a garden look like if it was designed from a pollinator’s perspective, rather than our own?
Pollinators see colors differently than we do, forage in different ways, and come together in different seasons. As a result, a garden designed for them can look very different from a garden designed for us. You can read more about it here.
In collaboration with Eden’s gardeners, pollinator experts and an AI scientist, Ginsberg devised a unique algorithmic tool that will always create the most empathetic plant design. She defines this as planting to support the greatest diversity of pollinator species. The algorithm solves this problem by choosing and arranging from a curated palette of locally appropriate plants. Each garden it generates is different, but each garden is calculated to support the maximum possible pollinator species. Go ahead and give your creativity free rein.
Every planted garden—from backyard to windowsill to museum grounds—is a living work of art designed and maintained with empathy for the tastes of pollinators, not ours.
Read more about it and discover how it works or get started!
