Dear TRENDS Diary –
Laura: We’re both artists and PhD candidates at CU Boulder. I have been interested in taking my creative practice outside of the studio and collaborating with others, both humans and nonhumans alike. My community in Boulder means a lot to me; I’m taking this as an opportunity to give back in times that call for radical care and compassion.
Kevin: I’m interested in the way communal play and storytelling can help people change their relationship to their circumstances. This coming together often happens in person, and sharing space is really important. But in a time when that’s not an option, how can we imagine another way of sharing time, experience and connection though play?
To think about this process, we’re creating little packages that will contain seeds, activities, and advice for planting. These will be planted around the city for people to find accidentally, or via seedseekers.co. While Seed Seekers is for everyone, we think kids in particular will love it.
Laura: It’s similar to geocaching in that you go to a pinned location on a map and find out what’s there. We’re instigators, in a way, providing an outdoor activity for people to get out of their homes, feeling joy through finding packets and reconnecting through a shared experience.
Kevin: In a safe way.
Laura: Yes. No search parties with more than 10 people, six feet apart! It’s also a way of providing something to look forward to, which is so important during this time.
Kevin: You have something that you can care for, that you can look forward to watching grow each day.
Laura: Change can be scary, but depending on how you experience it can turn the fear of the uncertain and the unknown moments of change into something generative, magical and inspirational.
Laura Hyunjhee Kim and Kevin Sweet, as told to Shay Castle
