Mangrove Ecologies

«Life between Ebb & Flow - Mangrove Ecologies» is a creative residency and research project, which invites selected Kenyan and Swiss artists from various disciplines to collectively explore the topic of mangrove ecologies through experimental research.

The goal of the project is in a first step, to investigate the material, environmental, economic, societal, and cultural relationships associated with mangrove ecologies.

In a second phase, the project explores the intrinsic capacities and agency of mangroves as interconnected beings who adapt, transform and interact, inspiring models for more harmonious and inclusive cohabitation between humans and their environments.

Lamu, Kenya

Lamu is located at the northern end of the Kenyan coast in the Indian Ocean and is surrounded by mangrove forests. The island thrives on its natural environment and ecosystems and is known for its unique Swahili culture, which depends on important natural resources such as mangroves and coral stones.

Through the ongoing dynamics and negotiations of values, interests and knowledge, Lamu inspires urgent reflection on future pathways for reshaping planetary life. Mangroves, in a metaphorical sense, embody many of these conversations and connections.

The works of the residency were first shown in Lamu, where they were made.

Artworks hung in the arched doorways of the old town, and the artists, researchers and facilitators talked about their findings with residents and guests in the courtyard.

Presented as a public activation during Art Basel 2025, this sound installation transforms the Viktoriahaus of the University of Basel into a listening garden shaped by ecological research and translocal exchange.

The first edition focuses on the mangrove ecosystem of Lamu in Kenya and was developed through fieldwork and artistic research along the Swahili coast. Emerging from this process, Radio Mikoko+ was conceived as a shared medium between the collaborating artists, serving as a vessel for sonic and ecological exchange.

Informed by residencies, workshops, and community dialogue, it invites visitors to engage with listening as a form of ecological awareness. Soundscapes, speculative narratives, visual scores, poetry, and counter-mappings come together to transform the Viktoriahaus into a listening garden—a space shaped by tides, winds, and cultural memory.