nordic miniature
SET IN THE GARDEN of Parque Terra Nostra, Nordic Miniature reflects upon the historical legacy of the garden, as well as the construction of the exotic within nineteenth century garden design. The park’s current condition is the result of an expansive approach towards history and geography, where botanical species were meticulously gathered from different parts of the world and arranged in ways that reflect both colonial and evolutionary history. The work takes on the idea of the garden as a museum, where the curation of exotic botanical specimens reflects a distinct world view. Here, the optic is shifted to the Nordic region, whose native species are treated as exotic and fragile specimens for display.
nordic miniature (2017)
80cm x 80cm x 190cm
beech wood, living trees and plants, soil, water, stone, plastic
open vitrine housing miniature living woodland and stream
photos by Filipa Couto & Sara Pinheiro
“We want to build a Nordic beech forest in a vitrine. Mist, a stream, a rotten log. Plastic moss. Even Danes ended small.
The woodland is in a vitrine, the park surrounding it being a museum. The collection is old world romantic meets new world exotic – Terra Nostra. Our earth. Palms and plunder.
In the garden within a garden the plants are Jurassic, from when the continents were adjoined: Gondwana-Azores-Laurasia. Within this deep time, the Nordic miniature woodland will keep Scandinavian hours. 37 1/2 hour weeks, Seven Eleven, Flexitime. Dawn and dusk will rise and fall 5 times a day, punctually.”
