Poetics of Solar Photovoltaics: A Multispecies Storytelling of Solar Energy in Place

Abstract

There is a paramount need to explore multispecies experiences with solar photovoltaics (PVs) as these technologies increasingly pervade both human and non-human worlds. This article offers experimental and exploratory insight into the possible relational experiences with PVs beyond the predominantly human-centred and techno-rationalistic lens. Through two rapid autoethnography cases in Singapore, I explore the entangled existence of solar PVs – as they are situated in place – from the human sensorial and embodied perspective. ‘Storytelling’ is engaged through a poetic first-person perspective, to emotionally connect and communicate the multispecies narrative surrounding solar PVs. The article culminates in a discussion at the nexus between STS, posthumanism and artistic and design research, in which I argue that humans become-with solar through a process of intentional presence in space and by leveraging the privilege of storytelling to centralise narratives surrounding solar “invisibilities”.