The exhibition is a collective outcome of the research-informed course “Entangled Practices” at the Royal Academy of Art in The Hague (KABK).

The exhibition uncovers a variety of hidden stories at the Hortus Botanicus such as underwater life, new perspectives on garden waste, investigations into plant names, plant journeys and histories, their entanglements with colonialism, biases in botanical conversations, co-creation with AI, and critical reflections on how to exhibit nature and see ourselves as part of it.

Throughout this course, Interior Architecture and Furniture Design | Cohabitation students listened to the garden, its material flows and botanical histories as well as gathered, mapped and explored human-non-human relationships. They also engaged with relevant academic theories, research methodologies and design strategies. Finally, the “Entangled Practices” course emphasized collaboration — among students, with external institutions, non-human entities and across disciplines.

We hope that the exhibition opens up new ways of seeing and experiencing non-human entities in the garden, offers ideas for reflection, and inspires a more attuned way of engaging with the botanical garden and its collection.

“Entangled Practices” course is led by Victoria Meniakina and Edith Winkler.

We hope to see you there!

Participating students:

Anne-Maren Birkelid
Milo Hatfield
Frederikke Hemmingsen
Artiom lacob
Vlada Kavalchuk
Aleksandra Ola Kojro
Alexandria Liiv
Denis Lippert
Ponke Mühlig
Anna Ratibor – Corvey
Aylin Sanci
Iji Shin
Anna “Sisi” Siméone
Benjamin Thomsen Karvonen
Oliver Tippl
Emily Vassallo Medici
Enrico Zanghirella

Special thanks to Hortus Amsterdam, Rooted Urbanism and Norbert Peeters, botanisch filosoof.