‘Soils Turn’ is a ‘field guide’ highlighting the work of over thirty distinguished soil artists, including soil essays, and directory of over 140 soil artists, published by ecoartspace. What a privilege to have featured work ‘8 dias: 8 terras’, a site-specific soil based performance made for Territori Festival, Ibiza.
“…human beings are not in a separate compost pile. We are humus, not Homo, not anthropos; we are compost, not posthuman.” Donna Haraway
Haraway’s clarion call to reimagine human‘ as humus‘ reflects a recent ‘soils turn’ in the social sciences and humanities, and is a provocation for mainstream soil knowledge that empowers humans to reconnect with soils. Heeding this call, Soils Turn is the 2025 ecoartspace printed book, to be realised as a directory of artists, designers, architects, and other creatives engaging with soil materials and soil protection issues. Under pressures of climate change, food sovereignty, pollution, and biodiversity loss, care of soils is urgently needed and must be addressed from multiple perspectives. Soils Turn is a practical guide for curators, scientists, students, policy makers and community organizers to connect with aesthetic earthly engagements.