mijnKOOL, organic photography as a participatory design method

mijnKOOL is an artistic participatory research project in which photographer Kristof Vrancken and design studio SOCIAL MATTER actively and naturally examined the Genk soil quality and composition using red cabbage and an organic photographic process. For this, we invited 12 Genk residents to plant a red cabbage in their garden and bring them together to let them experience the unique properties and forces containing plants. Plants can play an important role in detecting soil structures and properties. Red cabbage works well as a bio-indicator. During several meetings we discussed the growth of the cabbages examined soil samples. The participants created a photographic emulsion of their crop with the anthotype process, which resulted in an image. Depending on the acidity and composition of the soil in which the cabbage did grown changed the colour quality of the print. The use of red cabbage as a measuring instrument for soil composition gives an understanding of the impact that soil may have on ecology and food-production. For the participatory design conference I want to display the results of the project in an open atelier - lab, and to launch a similar project in the public space of Hasselt. The participants of the conference are invited to join the experiments and to think about future scenarios of this methodology.1