vision is better from below

single channel video, 3.13 minutes, 2024-5

A bull ant wanders through leaf litter seeking prey for her larvae back in the nest.

Who does she encounter on her wanderings?

Who is watching?

What entanglements are hidden there?

What gives colour to her world?

Bull ants and other ants and insects were filmed in bushland near Lindfield NSW – a magical setting which exists close to urban life. A Canon macro lens was trialled for the first time, and post-production software was used to shift the colour spectrum from our own to the bull ant’s of blues, greens, yellows and (simulated) ultraviolet. The soundtrack was created using a Korg vintage keyboard. Unlike most ants that use pheromones, the bull ant uses her superior eye sight to navigate and hunt, featuring three photo-receptors like human eyes, and seeing up to 1.5 metres. This relatively recent scientific discovery highlights the need for deeper explorations of more-than-human realms such as hers that are right under our noses.

The film’s title borrows from Donna Haraway, whose writing on situated knowledges guides all of my practice-based research. Her quote, “vision is better from below” refers to her observation that marginalised people have a clearer and more comprehensive view from their situated position than those in power, ‘above’.

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