Jardin Illegal / Clandestine

2025.
Orangeries des Bierbais, Mont Saint Guibert, Belgium
cooperation with PhD in One Night, Orangeries des Bierbais and International Center for Contemporary Garbage Kinshasa

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During a two‑week residency in the former Orangerie of a 19th‑century estate—once famed for its monumental greenhouses—I built micro‑greenhouse prototypes anyone can make with what’s close at hand.

My raw material was the plastic bottle. A bottle is a membrane meant to hold liquid, but what else might it hold? By following its industrial logic and creating almost no scrap, I let the bottle bloom. Cut, unfolded, and recomposed, discarded bottles became a constellation of tiny shelters for sprouting seeds.

These micro-greenhouses evoke the appearance of a delicate landscape in bloom—reminiscent of exotic plants scattered across the site. Though made from discarded plastic bottles, they transcend their origin, entering a quiet reciprocity with the landscape: existing vegetation offers shade, humidity, and wind protection, shaping the microclimate in which their contents can grow.

Jardin Clandestine reconfigures the historic park as a “third landscape,” defamiliarizing everyday consumer objects while extending the research begun in Contemporary Reconfigurations, the current phase at Bierbais exploring new relations between humans, landscapes, and waste through collective care and experimentation.

In collaboration with @phdinonenight, @orangeriesbierbais, and the International Center for Contemporary Garbage Kinshasa (@eddy_ekete).

Supported by Culture Moves Europe Grant and Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia.

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photograph: Mirna Udovčić

photos: M v d B

This work was produced with the financial assistance of the European Union. The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of the European Union.

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