When: 27th Oct, 19h-21h
Where: Lucas Gasselstraat 2a, 5613 LB Eindhoven
Free entrance
We're thrilled to invite you to a unique book launch and talk that promises to be a mind-expanding experience. Get ready to dive into the captivating world of "Greenhouse Stories: A Critical Re-examination of Transparent Microcosms," idited by the dynamic duo, d-o-t-s.
Mark your calendars for the 27th of October 2023, from 19h to 21h, and join us at the lively Onomatopee in Lucas Gasselstraat 2a, Eindhoven, The Netherlands. It's going to be an evening filled with engaging discussions and thought-provoking insights.
Our guests for the event are d-o-t-s, a nomadic curatorial practice founded by the fantastic Laura Drouet and Olivier Lacrouts. They're all about exploring the intricate and sometimes quirky relationships humans have with animals, plants, and landscapes. Their work knows no boundaries, spanning everything from writing to curating exhibitions, hosting hands-on workshops, and even taking on design commissions. Joining the conversation there will be Anastasia Eggers, who investigates agricultural rhythms that arise when our dependence on seasonal cycles is severed or when new dynamics surface due to geopolitical shifts or changes in market conditions. Her recent works explore rituals in agriculture as a tool to bring hidden narratives to light and to envision new forms of collectivity, coping, and awareness.
The spotlight of the evening will shine on "Greenhouse Stories," a thought-provoking exploration of the multifaceted world of greenhouses. While architecturally, greenhouses are structures meticulously designed to nurture and replicate the natural habitats of plants, this book invites us to reevaluate them as more than just technical marvels. Instead, we are encouraged to critically examine greenhouses as tools of (agri)cultural production with complex socio-historical, environmental, and creative dimensions.
Through a collection of insightful essays and engaging interviews, "Greenhouse Stories" uncovers tales of vegetal displacement, colonial appropriation, and environmental impact. Yet, it also unveils stories of empowerment and socially-engaged, eco-conscious projects that thrive within these transparent microcosms.
In a world grappling with significant anthropocentric pressures, this book urges us to question the symbolism and utility of greenhouses. By doing so, we may rediscover more humble and meaningful connections with our Earth and its diverse living communities.
About the installation
During the all week, the space of Onomatopee will host the installation Des mots sur des serres commissioned by d-o-t-s to Structure Bâtons in 2021, as part of the exhibition Histoires de serres curated by d-o-t-s for in the frame of the artistic programme loop – down the hills, across the land (Esch 2022 – European Capital of Culture).
The starting point of the commission was the many manuals written by female gardeners published during the 18th and 19th centuries that dealt with greenhouses and gardens as spaces for the emancipation of women. French studio Structure Bâtons was invited to develop a series of textile banners – evoking the protest panels used by women's rights activists in the 19th century – that would highlight the topic. Structure Bâtons decided to focus on contemporary women and, in November 2021, the studio launched a call for participation addressed to female gardeners from all over the world. The result of letter exchanges with the ones that adhered to the project, Des mots sur des serres is a collection of embroidered textile banners that act as visual repositories of memories, impressions, and sketches that deal with freedom, resilience, transmission, but also love and death.
About d-o-t-s
d-o-t-s is a nomadic curatorial practice founded by Laura Drouet and Olivier Lacrouts. The duo’s investigations focus on the diverse and questionable relationships that human communities establish with other animals, plants, and landscapes. Defined by the participatory and interdisciplinary approach, d-o-t-s’ work spans writing, exhibition-making, hands-on workshops and design commissions.
About Structure Bâtons
Structure Bâtons was co-founded in 2014 by Lucile Bataille and Sébastien Biniek. The projects developed by the duo span graphic design, curation, workshops, educational tools, type design, and publications. Focusing on different peoples, their folklore, and their visual constructions, the research by Structure Bâtons is nourished by teaching activities, collaborations, and residencies.
About Anastasia Eggers
Anastasia Eggers’ research-driven practice explores vulnerable ecologies alongside urgent social, cultural, and political conditions. It uses food as a medium to broach ideas of identity, origin, and geopolitics. Eggers investigates agricultural rhythms that arise when our dependence on seasonal cycles is severed or when new dynamics surface due to geopolitical shifts or changes in market conditions. Her recent works explore rituals in agriculture as a tool to bring hidden narratives to light and to envision new forms of collectivity, coping, and awareness. Eggers works in the field of critical and social design using various media such as video, installation, text and visual design, and works independently as well as in several collaborations, and is part of the collective Seasonal Neighbours.
Anastasia’s current project is investigating the seasonality in a post-seasonal world, where the growing, harvesting and consuming of food is no longer dependent on natural factors. Given the ever increasing reality of a post-seasonal food supply chain, she explores how a new notion of seasonality emerges, directed by financial, social or political aspects, and phenomena like the energy crisis. Using the medium of seasonal celebrations, she critically interrogates the distorted nature of current agricultural practices and attempts to re-establish the relationship with seasonality seeing how far removed it is from the natural cycle.
