— INSPIRATION —

NURTURED BY NATURE

“Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways we think feel and behave.”

Autumn is a favorite season here at Rosie Village. The chill in the air signals beautiful colors of the changing foliage, warm sweaters, chai lattes and pumpkin spice cake, long walks in the woods … and lots of meals centered around deliciously earthy mushrooms. Yum! 

But there’s so much more to mushrooms than the usual associations with food—or alcohol and magical types of fungi—that come to mind. 

Did you know they are the inventors of the original “internet”? The world wood web is an ancient underground network of fungi that interconnect above-ground plants across vast distances, allowing for exchanges of communication, goods and resources between fungi and plant roots.

They can also devour oil spills and discarded plastics, and are used to clean up environmental toxins. How cool is that?

I developed an obsession with fungi many years ago when my house was overrun with mold after a devastating hurricane ruined my city (but that’s another story for another day), and now a lot of the art I make is inspired by these enigmatic organisms. So, I was excited to discover a new book to add to my shelves. But you don’t have to be a fungi-fanatic to enjoy the writing of Merlin Sheldrake in Entangled Life: How Fungi make our Worlds, Change our Minds & Shape our Futures.

It’s easy to read and full of awe-inspiring, mind-boggling scientific observations about this overlooked kingdom. Neither plant and nor animal, fungi are absolutely integral to human existence. We’re here on earth now and will only continue to be, thanks to them:

“Plants only made it out of the water 500 million years ago because of their collaboration with fungi, which served as their root system for tens of millions of years until plants could evolve on their own … This ancient association gave rise to all recognizable life on land, the future of which depends on the continued ability of plants and fungi to form healthy relationships.”

And now is the perfect time of year to get cozy with these creative, symbiotic creatures. Grab your blanket, a cup of hot tea and settle down with Entangle Life for a bit of earthy inspiration and fascination this fall. 

(Ask if it’s available at your local bookseller!)



Forest photograph by Pascal Debrunner, @debrupas