We Come From Birds as We Fall

We Come From Birds as We Fall is an independent outcome of the post-doctoral research residency of visual artist and researcher Raquel Versieux (Brazil, 1984), held at Luca School of Arts, Genk, Belgium, between January and May 2024. During this period, Raquel Versieux had the opportunity to conduct lectures, workshops, and produce a series of three paintings, among other activities.

Under the theme "humans, more than humans and even non-humans," this chapbook delves into connections between the artist's previous practices and memories, in which plants play central roles in creation. One such project is the community-based art initiative conducted in the Cariri region of Ceará (Brazil) since 2019, called “Manejo Movente,” which involves experimental cotton cultivation in partnership with local farming families, and whose reflections and methodologies are central to this publication.

Building upon this foundation, the research looks at the resilient vegetation growing on heaps of waste from coal mining in Genk, questioning the mystical forces shaping this residue forest and contributing to her focus on decolonial landscape narratives.

36 pages, Riso printed by the artist in six colors