La pianta. La memoria e noi
Tactics of Negotiation
for Peace in the World
ROGEHEBO © Ruth Mateus-Berr
The
exhibition La pianta. La memoria e noi by Ruth Mateus-Berr (Center for Didactics of Art and Interdisciplinary
Education) explores what we can learn from the plant world about memory, resilience, and peaceful coexistence
at a time marked by global tensions and ecological crises. The presentation at the Austrian Cultural Forum Rome resonates
with current artistic and societal debates on climate, environment, and future-making, such as those discussed in the context
of the Vienna Climate Biennale.
At the center of the exhibition is the Floral Archive,
an ongoing artistic project inspired by the florilegia of the Renaissance. The paintings present rare and endangered plants
from Italy, in which botanical knowledge merges with mythology, history, and surreal visual associations. Plants appear here
not as decorative motifs but as carriers of stories, memories, and ecological relationships.
Another focus is the
research project DEMEDARTS (FWF PEEK AR-609), which explores the relationships between art, design, and dementia.
Among the works presented is the critically speculative walker The Gardener by Ruth Mateus-Berr
and Pia Scharler, complemented by experimental designs developed by students of NABA – Nuova Accademia di
Belle Arti. The exhibition is further expanded through short documentary films on sustainable agriculture in Sicily, created
by the students Julia Knappitsch, Lena Fürjesi, Paula Peters, Lena
Mayringer, Stella Binar and Katharina Idamduring a field workshop led by filmmaker
John Dutton and Ruth Mateus-Berr. The films explore ecological relationships, biodiversity, and the social
dimensions of agricultural practice.
La pianta. La memoria e noi is conceived as an open archive,
where plants, images, and stories enter into dialogue.The exhibition proposes to understand peace not as an abstract condition,
but as a daily practice of attention, care, and negotiation—with ourselves, with others, and with the environment.
