Letter from Vivien SANSOUR
Heirloom seeds
tell us the inherent
relationship with nature
Heirloom
seeds tell us
the inherent
relationship
with nature
Vivien Sansour is an artist based in Palestine. She is working
on a project to preserve and pass the heritage/heirloom
seeds carefully selected by our ancestors throughout
thousands of years onto the next generation. These seeds
are a gift from nature that has adapted to the climate and
natural features of where they have been cultivated over a
long period of time and inherited ceaselessly. Her practice
addresses not only protecting agrobiodiversity, but also the
inheritance of cultural memories passed down through
seeds, the restoration of our inherent relationship with the
earth, and the seak for ubiquitous human connections, will
provide a ne perspective on the future of the
environment.
VIVIEN SANSOUR
Vivien Sansour is an artist, storyteller, researcher and
conservationist. She uses image, sketch, film, soil, seeds, and
plants to enliven old cultural tales in contemporary
presentations and to advocate for seed conservation and the
protection of agrobiodiversity as a cultural/political act. Vivien
founded the Palestine Heirloom Seed Library as part of this work
with local farmers, and has been showcased internationally,
including at the Chicago Architecture Biennale, V&A Museum in
London, Dutch Design Week in Eindhoven, and the Venice Art
Biennale. A culinary historian and enthusiastic cook, Vivien
works to bring threatened varieties “back to the dinner table to
become part of our living culture rather than a relic of the past”.
This work has led her to collaborate with award winning chefs,
including Anthony Bourdain and Sammi Tamimi. Born in
Jerusalem, Vivien lives in both Bethlehem, Palestine and Los
Angeles, USA. https://viviensansour.com
Connection with history
and the earth through
heritage seeds
Connection with
history and the
earth through
heritage seeds
— Please tell us the details of the Palestine
Heirloom Seed Library. Also, what brought you
to start this project?
The Palestine Heirloom Seed Library is an initiative
that I started a few years ago in an attempt to salvage
parts of my own history and my people’s story. Many
of our heritage seeds are disappearing, as are the
cultivation methods that our grandparents practiced.
We live under a brutal political reality and our seeds
have been our saviours for generations. We have
been gifted heirloom seeds that have co-evolved
with nature and have allowed us to feed ourselves
and others. When I saw the erosion of these
cultivation systems, the disappearance of these
varieties, and the eradication of our culture, I
understood the urgency of preserving this history in
order to secure our future. This led me to starting the
seed library as a platform to work with seeds and
also to tell these old stories in new forms.
leaves on an area of reclaimed land
— Your project started locally in Palestine, but
how is it now spreading all over the world?
My work in Palestine entailed a lot of time building
real relationships and understanding my own
community while also dissecting myself and my own
world views. Traveling and being part of other
communities in the world allowed me the
opportunity to better understand myself and to
connect to the struggles of others, particularly
farmers from different places in the globe who feed
us and who face immense challenges. This
communication and convivial approach allows us to
become partners in a new global design. It also allows
for the exchange of knowledge through experience.
By including art, storytelling, music, farming, seed
sharing, and honest conversations, the library has
been allowed to find a home across the world and in
the homes of others who are equally committed to
living a dignified life that honours our connection
and history in this planet.
— How did people receive and react to your
various activities; protecting seeds as a
cultural heritage and raising questions about agriculture itself?
I have been in awe of people’s heartwarming
reception all over the world and particularly in
Palestine where it all started. Palestinians living in
Palestine and from the diaspora throughout the
world continue to write and share their own stories
and relationships to these seeds and to their families.
Whether we are from Guatemala or California or
Palestine. Seed exchanges and honouring those seed
guardians from around the world has allowed us to
be connected to places that otherwise we would not
have connected to. People may not even know where
Palestine is, but when we connect and we speak
about our experiences as humans who have joy and
pain and who struggle and celebrate, a true bond is
created because everyone whose heart is still awake
relates to these things. The beauty of plants is that
they can also remind us of who we are and ignite our
emotional generosity, so we share with the est of
the world.
Heirloom Seed Library started from 2018. Vivien cooks
harvested ingredients and discuss biodiversity, cultural
diversity, heritage, etc with community members.
As the seeds and people
of the soil of our planet
As the seeds and
people of the soil
of our planet
— Your initiative plays an important role in
preserving natural diversity. However, have you
found broad meanings you didn’t expect?
Absolutely. In Arabic we refer to our children as
“Zaree’a”, which literally means “plants”. We also
refer to heritage seeds as the “knowers of soil”. These
two concepts became very evidently important in
my journey. They highlight that we are not separate
from our natural environment and that in fact we are
all seeds ourselves. So our survival and the health of
our world and our communities is interlinked.
Meaning, what I do in Palestine is not isolated from
what someone does in Japan. We are all the people of
this planet’s soil and that tangible understanding
gives me the ability to see the world in a whole new
way. A way that requires more courage but also more
humility as we work on designing more tender
spaces for the future generations.
— In human history, what has agriculture been
like and what do you think it will be like in the
future?
The more I learn about agriculture the more I
understand that its roots are violent. It was
developed through transforming natural landscapes
and exercising dominance over them. Most
importantly it has developed as a result of massive
human anxiety about our survival. Can we develop a
food system that trusts nature more? I think this is
our challenge for the future and most likely the only
path for our survival. Can we survive in the current
food system? Sure for a little while. But then what?
This is why we must remember our relationship to
soil as being part of us rather than something
separate that we must dominate. The future of food
depends on how we answer these questions.
For the natural
environment filled with
diversity and equality
For the natural
environment
filled with
diversity
and equality
— In order to make the future of this planet
sustainable, how should we involve the earth?
We must be quiet and listen. It’s time to listen and to
listen deeply.
— What is your ideal landscape that you want
to leave for the future generation?
My ideal landscape is one that is diverse and
integrated. One that has equal space for the animals
and birds as for the plants, and as for the humans.
One where we allow nature to just be, rather than
trying to control it. Right now I am working on
creating a public garden project in Palestine that will
attempt to do that. We have already started working
on it. If you are interested in our project, please check here:
www.viviensansour.com