Timespan is excited to present the new exhibition We Move As A Murmuration opening on March 23rd 2024. Drawing inspiration from bird flocks to reflect on the entangled relationships between humans and birds, the exhibition proposes approaches of kinship, liberation, and collective care. The exhibition features the work of artists: adrienne maree brown, Chuan Lun Wu, Disarming Design from Palestine, Edwyn Collins, Hanna Tuulikki, J. Drew Lanham, Joan Ross, Khaled Jarrar, Mamadou Tall Diedhiou, Penny Woodley, Petrit Halilaj, Sethembile Msezane, and Un/Nature.

Following the natural movement of murmurations, co-curators Naoko Mabon and Timespan’s director Giulia Gregnanin have developed an exhibition design that in July will “swirl” and transform with new artworks and installation arrangements to bring fresh perspectives to audiences and emphasise the themes of change and movement part of the exhibition.

We Move As A Murmuration looks at the oppression, domination, and alienation of nature under capitalist, colonial, and modernist forces, addressing environmental and social justice. By moving as a murmuration, the exhibition advocates for the liberation of all, and invites collective action to overcome the separation between humans and nature. We Move As A Murmuration intends to shed light on the catastrophic effects of the commodification of the environment brought by extractive capitalism, which designated birds a “sacrifice zone” to immolate for the sake of profit. This is evident in the devastation caused by the recent bird flu outbreak and in the disruption of migratory patterns due to climate change.

The exhibition is a part of the homonymous research project We Move As A Murmuration, initiated in autumn 2023, in response to the Bird Flu outbreak in the North of Scotland, questioning the anthropocentric interpretation of nature as something to be controlled and disposed of. The project comprises a series of talks, workshops, and activities held both in Helmsdale and online from autumn 2023 to autumn 2024, fostering a collective process of learning and unlearning, to which the public and local communities have been invited to contribute.

We Move As A Murmuration is curated by Timespan and the freelance curator Naoko Mabon, in collaboration with community members, scientists, activists, artists and practitioners in Helmsdale and beyond. To move away from traditional curatorial practices entangled in individualistic and capitalistic systems, this project employs a collaborative, open, shared curatorial methodology inviting different perspectives and experiences to reclaim curating as a practice of care – responsively maintaining various lives within an interdependent network.