Make Like Magpies — Turning the Overlooked into Art Workshop

​In the magpie’s world, beauty and meaning don’t come from rarity, they come from attention.

​Make Like Magpies invites the people of Helsingborg to learn from one of nature’s great adapters: the magpie. Magpies are collector birds, building elaborate nests from whatever they find: twigs, feathers, bits of string, or a scrap of fabric. They are not stuck in their ways, they see value in everything around them. In cities, urban magpies thrive by adapting to change, just as we must in a shifting climate.

​Through creative reuse, participants become “urban magpies” too, collecting overlooked fragments from daily life and turning them into small artworks: garlands/mobiles (28 February) and postcards (7 March). By noticing, sharing, and creating, we discover abundance in what’s already here, transforming climate anxiety into curiosity and care.

​About the facilitator
Edwina Putri Primananda (b. Jakarta, Indonesia) is a visual artist and writer working with collage, discarded materials, and storytelling. Her practice explores belonging, memory, and care through turning what’s often overlooked into spaces of reflection and connection. Rooted in community and accessibility, her work often takes shape as participatory installations and workshops.

​What you’ll do

• ​A short talk / introduction to magpies as a metaphor for adaptation and abundance

• ​Hands-on making with reused and found materials

• ​Co-creating small works that can later become part of the program’s evolving exhibition