Plot 46: Beans, Beetles, and the Soil Biome is a short artist book that chronicles four growing seasons spent on a community allotment at Maple Hill Urban Farm in Ottawa. The allotment—Plot 46—served as both site and subject for my art-research project on regenerative vegan organic agriculture that began in 2022.
The original edition of three 5 by 10 inch hand-bound artist books contains reproductions of collagraphic and drypoint prints, photographs, and poetry interwoven with the project memoir. Organized into six chapters, I present my research reflections examining the 400-square-foot plot from multiple perspectives. Starting with the pastoral tradition, I look at the agroecological landscape through a human lens. Then I speculate about the more-than-human viewpoints in the vegetative (i.e., the beans and beetles) and below-ground (soil biome) zones Throughout, I reflect on the ecological and ethical significance of regenerative agriculture in an increasingly warming and polluted world.
To make the book more accessible, I have created a digital “flip book” video version, which allows viewers to pause and read at their own pace.
Click to view the Plot 46: Beans, Beetles and the Soil Biome Flip Book on YouTube.