Join us for two study days on the 10 & 11 December around the figure of the urban rat in the context of the yearly trajectory called Otherworldly communications.

These study days are meant to critically engage with different conceptions of the ’other’ as in: other than human, otherworldly and otherings. We convoke the figure of the urban rat to speak about notions of invasiveness and out-of-place-ness, and to examine how the gesture of othering normalises and fuels systemic violence. These study days will bring us closer to so-called invasive/unwanted species while discussing biosocial order, sterile urban spaces and, consequently, who gets to (visibly) occupy them.

During these two days, we will scratch at several layers through a visit to the Sewer Museum of Brussels, contributions and activations from the Invasive Species Working Group, collective readings and a speculative writing session by Maru Mushtrieva.*

*Bio’s

The Invasive Species Working Group will be represented by Yi Zang and Hwa Young Jung
Yi Zang designed the board game Rat King: Migration of the Brown Rat. This board game is designed around the transnational, trans-century migration trajectory of the brown rat (Rattus norvegicus), also known as the common rat, street rat, sewer rat, dock rat, Hanover rat, or Norwegian rat. Their numerous names may reflect the species’ long journey and its many encounters with humans across different times, spaces, and regions.
Originating in northern China, Mongolia and Siberia, the brown rat has now spread to every continent except Antarctica. They have become the most widespread rodent across most of Europe and North America, firmly established in worldwide ecosystems.

A “rat king” is a rare phenomenon in which a group of rats becomes physically tangled together by their tails, which has been recorded in many parts of the world. Yi understands it as a kind of glitch in everyday reality, an entanglement that appears when enough encounters and conditions allow it to emerge. Through this game, we will collectively speculate on the movements of brown rat families and explore how their migration paths intersect with climate change, colonial navigation, human expansion, global trade, and ongoing efforts to eradicate them. What other forms of glitches might emerge within this continual flow of reality?

Hwa Young Jung has a practice of co-creating projects, often using games and play to explore social issues.
She is working on an international collaboration between Liverpool (UK) and Seoul (South Korea) to co-create an extravagant K-pop music video about how to live harmoniously with urban wild animals on a changing planet.
Exploring the intersection of the climate emergency and migrant justice, we question ideas ‘native’, ‘alien’, ‘invasive’ when applied to animals and what parallels might we draw between government policies towards urban wildlife and the treatment of people in new lands - all through the joy of K-pop.
(https://slyrabbit.net/about/)

Maru Mushtrieva is a multidisciplinary artist and cultural worker based in Berlin and Brussels. With a diverse practice spanning across performance art, sound installations, and collaborative projects, their work explores themes of identity, social dynamics, hosting, material storytelling and the intersection of extractive practices and technology with contemporary society and environment.
(https://www.marumushtrieva.com/info/)

Participation + Reservation

• Participation is free.
• Registration is open until the 4th December
• Reservation is required as places are limited; first come, first served.
• Please, reserve by sending an email to: sarah@constantvzw.org
• The two days will start at 10:00 till 17:30, with several breaks throughout the day
• Vegetarian lunch will be provided on both days by the wonderful APUS & les cocottes volantes
• We can provide childcare for Wednesday afternoon.
• Please let us know when you make your reservation whether you need care for your little one(s) and if you have food allergies via sarah@constantvzw.org

Accessibility

• The two days (except the visit to the museum) will take part in the studio of Constant
• Address: Jetsesesteenweg 388 Chaussée de Jette, 1081 Koekelberg (Brussels)
• Wheelchair accessible entrance + toilet + meeting space
• Parking in the street is usually available, we can block a parking spot if asked in advance.

Language

• The main language of communication is English.
• Whisper translation to French and Dutch can be organised on the spot.

**Image**
This drawing made by A.L. Tarter around the 1940S is titled A rat leaving a ship via the mooring rope, thus spreading the plague. It was aimed at the making of an educational film showing the transmission and effects of the plague, especially the role of rats. Now contemporary researches contest the major role the rats have allegedly played in the spreading of the plague.