Description

At the edge of Civitella Ranieri’s forest, peeking into its manicured landscape, the Shelter of Belonging is a place of respite that welcomes both human and nonhuman inhabitants. The installation features a series of bespoke habitats for local fauna -- including bats, birds, and solitary bees, as well as smaller terrestrial animals – with designs that are inspired by fragments of the castle and gardens, specifically alluding to spaces where wildlife dwell in close proximity to human life. In addition to supporting these habitats, the installation’s wooden-framed structures provide seats for residents to rest— just slightly outside of the designated social space of the gazebo and lawn chairs.

Reflecting on seemingly oppositional terms – such as visitor/resident, shelter/home, and visible/hidden – this project is a meditation on multispecies environments and questions of belonging in our biodiverse world.