Join the ponds among ponds curators and artists in conversation with scientists from NYU Shanghai and DONG Ningning (Fudan University), Sascha Krause (East China Normal University), PAN Yan (Fudan University), ZHANG Minhua (East China Normal University), as they discuss the exhibition ponds among ponds and film Symbiotic Earth. 

In Chinese and English

The documentary film Symbiotic Earth (dir. John Feldman, 2018) explores the life and ideas of evolutionary biologist Lynn Margulis, whose unconventional theories challenged the male-dominated scientific community and continue to fundamentally challenge how we look at ourselves, evolution, and the environment. 

The film is available for screening online one week prior to the roundtable discussion, starting on 20 March. To view, please register. NYU Shanghai community members may also view the film on Docuseek.

The film is available for screening online throughout the exhibition period (25 March - 29 May 2021).


In conjunction with ponds among ponds: an exhibition of threshold behavior & nested life.

ponds among ponds and its related events are presented as the final season of The (Invisible) Garden, a two-year artistic research program that inquires into the garden as a method that shapes our understanding of Nature and our relationships to other species. From Fall 2019 through Spring 2021, the ICA at NYU Shanghai presents artists, thinkers, and practitioners, through exhibitions and events, to consider the garden and ask how might we denature Nature?