ART AS AN EMOTIONAL LINK 

How can artistic practice bridge science and emotion, and in what ways does Cecil Todd’s Vertebrates and Invertebrates mural explore ecological empathy, interspecies relationships, and humanity’s place within a shared ecosystem?

By Sarafina Kebirungi

Looking at Cecil Todd's 'Vertebrates and Invertebrates”, a mosaic mural at Makerere's Department of Zoology, Entomology & Fisheries sciences (ZEFS), had me thinking about the significance of art in scientific frames.

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I think that art is a visual and emotional language that bridges scientific data into a more grounded and relatable context that's more digestible for the audience. I use the same approach as an artist exploring the concept of ecological harmony through examining inter-species relationships.

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This artwork had me thinking whether the scientific studies of various species leads to ecological empathy or if it's more of an individualistic attribute.

A scientific study of species reveals deeper worlds of interconnection and interdependencies, but at the end of the day I wonder if advocacy for ecological harmony through examining inter-species relationships can exist outside the lens of human benefit.

Perhaps there's a certain space that art bridges when it looks at species from an emotional perspective that can peel away the distance that science; which looks at species from angles of classification, behaviour, and systems; through slow observation and emotional attention of species as living presences.

Nevertheless, for both art and science to create an impactful result in attaining ecological harmony, I believe that there's need for a profound authentic conversation about interspecies relationships that requires us to minimise the self-importance aspect that always places us at the front of most inquiries, but rather consider a truly collective eco-system-conscious approach to relating with more-than-human species.

Sarafina Kebirungi (Kengi)