WEED ECOLOGIES / TENTACULAR ECOLOGIES Site specific installation, 2022 MUHNAC (Botanical Garden) , Lisbon, PT Sculptural / architectural intervention, spontaneous plant agency, 24K gold leaf, golden ink Weed Ecologies/ Tentacular Ecologies is an artistic installation co-created between a human artist and spontaneous flora or so-called "weeds". The artist invites this flora to colonize the facade of a building by providing them a space to live, subtracted from the architectural matter.
The visual gesture of the artwork resembles ancient ceramic mending techniques such as kintsugi, which seeks to repair without hiding, taking aesthetical advantage of imperfection. At the same time, the image of gold, contrasting with the traditionally wild and marginal vegetable occupation of weeds, puts forward a tension between concepts of monetary, aesthetical, ecological, and architectural value. The public is challenged to discover a neglected side of urban ecologies, from different points of view, scales, and ambiences, in their relationship with architectural spaces.
The 17th of May 2022 marked the beginning of the process of interaction between the artistic structure and the spontaneous natural processes.
Curator: Sofia Marçal
https://www.ulisboa.pt/evento/ecologias-tentaculares
