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, and (simulated) ultraviolet. 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 knowledge guides my practice-based research. “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’.

A version of this film was exhibited at the Visual Science of Art Conference in Scotland in 2024, with modifications made more recently to incorporate some vintage Korg tones into the soundtrack.

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