‘Bees are highly sensitive creatures and can be seen as sentinels for the health of the planet.’ — Buttress
The Hive was originally conceived for the UK Pavilion of the 2015 Milan Expo touching on the theme ‘feeding the planet’. Taking research on bee communication out of the research laboratory and into the public realm, The Hive is an important example of transdisciplinary art and science.
The immersive audiovisual structure draws the audience through Kew Gardens, following the flight pattern of bees. It quietly raises awareness of human vulnerability to climate change by bringing visitors down ‘to scale’ with the world of bees, connecting with the rhythmic fluctuations of their day and providing insight into their vibration-based communication.
The work addresses the urgent need for climate-change action by exposing the ‘issues we face in relation to pollinators, their intimate relationships with plants and their vital role in helping us feed a rapidly growing population’ (Buttress).
The Hive has won over 20 awards.
AIMS
Cultural
- — The artist aimed to draw parallels between the complex relationships between bees and those between humans.
- —To evoke reflection and a more empathic understanding of the world through the vibrations of bees.
- —To create a ‘quiet’, yet profound work that gives insight into the essential role that bees fulfil in relation to food production.
Environmental
—To reconnect people with nature: ‘ opened a beehive for the first time two years ago and it gave me a different outlook on life and how humans are connected to nature. We are in danger of losing that vitally important connection, especially in cities’ (Buttress).
OUTCOMES AND IMPACTS
Gold Award for Architecture and Landscape—BIE Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Best Pavilion Architecture Award—Italian Association of Architects and other Italian
National Construction and Landscape bodies, 2015, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Best Public Use Project with Public Funding—Blueprint Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Best Completed Community Building—Manchester Architects Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Highly Commended, Landscape Award—WAN Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Highly Commended, Temporary Landscape Design—Landscape Institute Awards,
UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Commended, Exhibition Lighting and Temporary Installations—AL Awards, UK Pavilion
Milan Expo 2015
Best Exhibit Winner—Exhibitor Magazine
Iconic Award for 2015—Best of the Best for Event/Exhibition. German Design Council
Gold Award for Architecture and Landscape—BIE Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Best Pavilion Architecture Award—Italian Association of Architects and other Italian
National Construction and Landscape bodies, 2015, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Best Public Use Project with Public Funding—Blueprint Awards, UK Pavilion Milan Expo 2015
Methods of Evaluation
No formal evaluation material has been collated to date, however the project has received significant media coverage and reviews.
Results
Cultural: Audience engagement: The project was showcased at the UK Pavilion 2015 Milan World Expo and attracted massive audiences. Installed at the Royal Botanical Garden, Kew, in June, 2016, and considered the 15th most visited attraction in the UK, it has provided an ideal setting for ongoing large scale audience engagement. (http://www.alva.org.uk/details.cfm?p=423).
Environmental: The project raises awareness of the delicate balance of ecosystems while also highlighting the sophistication of bee communication.
PROJECT DELIVERY
In response to the 2015 Milan World Expo theme, ‘Feeding the Planet’, the team of artists and engineers led by Buttress built The Hive to focus attention to the plight of the honeybee. Bees and other pollinators are responsible for a vast proportion of the planet’s food sources, but are compromised by climate change and other threats to habitat. The work ‘reinterpret[s] apiarian ecology’ into an immersive, real-time and multi-sensory experience of a hive.
IMPACT OF ARTWORK PRODUCTION
The main cost both financially and environmentally speaking was building material. Both installations were erected in purpose built event settings rather than the natural environment. The cost of relocation to or rebuilding at Kew Gardens is unclear, but the social impact of the work is high. The Hive continues to garner significant media coverage and has become a hugely successful attraction, succeeding in its mission to raise awareness of the key role bees and pollinators hold in the world’s ecosystem, and the delicate nature of their position due to climate change and other human intervention.
SOURCES
Bhattacharya, Shaoni. (2016, 13 July). ‘Listen to secrets of a honeybee hive in Kew’s latest sculpture.’ New Scientist 3082. Retrieved from https://www-newscientist-com/article/mg23130820-700-listen-to-secrets-of-a-honeybee-hive-in-kews-latest-sculpture/.
Buttress, Wolfgang. Artist’s website: http://www.wolfgangbuttress.com/.