Art as Ecosophy

Hybrid Practices in Ecological Integration

Abstract

The thesis statement of this paper revolves around the idea that contemporary hybrid art practices aspire to transforming their purpose towards sustaining a balance between political and ecological infrastructures, thereby making societal and environmental issues more discernible and advocating for integrative ways of human existence within the environment. In an era marked by the devastating consequences of technological advancement, misuse of science for profit, and the antagonisms of economic dynamics, hybrid artworks offer alternative ways of existence within collectives, striving to reconfigure the connections between human subjectivity and the external world. The case study explored here is an art project by Špela Petrič, titled Confronting Vegetal Otherness: Phytoteratology. This paper centres on two primary arguments: Félix Guattari’s concept of ecosophy as a framework for hybrid art strategies, and Donna Haraway’s perspective from When Species Meet about the necessity to disrupt traditional power hierarchies among species. The aim of this study is to demonstrate how art has power to destabilize anthropocentric viewpoints. A transdisciplinary approach guides this text, with research methods including analysis, synthesis, observation, and comparative analysis.