The Ecogeoglyphic Observatory: New SUM Gameplay, Round 1

A new version of the board game, "New SUM," has been developed this year, inspired by lessons learned from last year’s deconstruction of a popular board game about colonizing land. The board game design this year is her adaptation of Nature’s design, found on a seed head in her yard, with rules based on community play patterns over the past year. The game encourages collaborative play and can be built upon in successive rounds of play, and/or customized for group sessions.

Playing New SUM game! Players should bring a game piece/avatar to represent them on the board. Players should bring a long term goal for something they feel would help our collective home in the Treasure Valley, and be able to expand on 1-2 challenges that stand in the way of that goal.

About the Exhibit

Andie Frosch, Christa Howarth, Claire Quade, Ellis Locke, Laura Feeney, Mary K Johnson, Matthew Kennedy, Ryan Simmons, Teal Gardner, Tim Andreae, Samantha Price, Lab51 Students

From March 15 - April 20, 2024, The Ecogeoglyphic Observatory will transform the MING Studios gallery into Visitors Center - an invitation to establish and re-establish a connection to the Boise Valley and its surroundings. Riffing off of the ubiquitous 'visitor's center' that marks any tourist attraction, historical site, or natural feature of interest, this show focuses on the Boise Valley as a site of profound importance and inestimable value. The Boise Valley continues to transform through the pressures of urban and suburban development, climate change, and a population surge. Visitors Center will present tools for sensitizing to this unique place.  Sensitizing is a process of opening doors to a deeper sense of belonging and, through this, of care. We wonder what it means to be truly sensitive to a place; to have a personal connection to the natural living systems; to know its human histories, to delve into the dynamics at play in the present, and to dream sustainable, interdependent futures. Conversely, we wonder about the repercussions of desensitization.

The Ecogeoglyphic Observatory is a collective of artists, scientists, historians, writers, renters, parents, therapists, teachers, students and more. This is their second exhibition at MING Studios.

Please see eggobservatory.cargo.site for more information, and follow the project on Instagram @ecogeoglyphic.observatory

Arts & History Grant Program

The City of Boise’s Arts & History Grant program funds quality arts, history, and cultural projects that benefit people living in Boise city limits. Since 1997, the city has awarded over 500 grants with a total disbursement of over $2.1 million. Follow along using #AHGrant. Learn more.