The Botanical Mind: Art, Mysticism and The Cosmic Tree, edited by Gina Buenfeld and
Martin Clark, Camden Art Centre, 2021
https://www.botanicalmind.online/about
The Botanical Mind: Art, Mysticism and The Cosmic Tree looks back through history at diverse cultural, spiritual and mythological traditions to reappraise the importance of plants to life on this planet. The exhibition presents an extraordinary array of artworks by over 70 surrealist, modern, visionary, outsider, indigenous Amazonian and contemporary artists, spanning more than 500 years. Through the symbolism of diverse cultural artifacts and the works of mystics, artists and thinkers around the world, The Botanical Mind reveals how the vegetal kingdom has metaphysical importance to the development of consciousness and spirituality.
Drawing on esoteric ideas from alchemy and the western occult tradition, this exhibition relates the fractal geometries that appear in plant shapes and patterns to the ancient metaphysical belief in terrestrial life as a microcosm of the universe – the celestial expanse of the macrocosm. Many of the works in the show revolve around the concept of the Axis Mundi (World Axis) or Cosmic Tree, a universal archetype that appears in the symbolism and mythologies of numerous cultures connecting the human condition to the physical and transcendental universe. The Botanical Mind investigates the secular and spiritual aspects of plants, their ongoing significance to human life, and how we engage with and activate them in culture, counter-culture, art and music.
This richly illustrated publication includes essays by the curators and contributions from scholars on the key themes of the exhibition – alchemy, art history, plant ontology, Gaian ecology, anthropology and ethnobotany – unifying philosophical, scientific, spiritual and artistic approaches to meditate on the cosmic significance of plants in different worldviews.
Humanity’s place in the natural order is under scrutiny as never before, held in a precarious balance between visible and invisible forces: from the microscopic threat of a virus to the monumental power of climate change.
Drawing on indigenous traditions from the Amazon rainforest; alternative perspectives on Western scientific rationalism; and new thinking around plant intelligence, philosophy and cultural theory, The Botanical Mind Online investigates the significance of the plant kingdom to human life, consciousness and spirituality across cultures and through time. It positions the plant as both a universal symbol found in almost every civilisation and religion across the globe, and the most fundamental but misunderstood form of life on our planet.
This new online project has been developed in response to the COVID-19 crisis and the closure of our galleries due to the pandemic. The Botanical Mind: Art, Mysticism and The Cosmic Tree was originally conceived as a trans-generational group exhibition, bringing together surrealist, modernist and contemporary works alongside historical and ethnographic artefacts, textiles and manuscripts spanning more than 500 years. Scheduled to open on Earth Day, April 22, 2020, the exhibition opened on Thursday 24 September 2020. In the meantime we launched this online programme of new artist commissions, podcasts, films, texts, images and audio, expanding on and enriching the ideas and issues informing the show.
Including new digital commissions; a focus on the Yawanawa people of Amazonian Brazil, who were to travel to London to take part in the exhibition but are now self-isolating in their village; and a new podcast series drawing on some of the leading voices in the fields of science, anthropology, music, art and philosophy; the project will form an expanding archive exploring ideas of plant sentience, indigenous cosmologies, radical botany, Gaia theory, quantum biology, and the influence of psychoactive plant medicines on various cultures and counter-cultures across the globe.
During this period of enforced stillness, our behaviour might be seen to resonate with plants: like them we are now fixed in one place, subject to new rhythms of time, contemplation, personal growth and transformation. Millions of years ago plants chose to forego mobility in favour of a life rooted in place, embedded in a particular context or environment. The life of a plant is one of constant, sensitive response to its environment—a process of growth, problem-solving, nourishment and transformation, played out at speeds and scales very different to our own. In this moment of global crisis and change there has perhaps never been a better moment to reflect on and learn from them.
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