with: Lucila Kenny and Barbara Collé
Friday 17 May 7pm
Zabriskie, Reichenberger Str. 150, Berlin
Book presentation of flower, fruit, leaf, husk and root
“They are in a cocoon. A cocoon filled with the blue that is their family. In the air hangs the moment of a story, a big story: the first time Lu made blue with Woad.”
About the book
Since 2011, Naan Rijks, visual artist and biologist and now 92 years old, has been growing dye plants in a communal garden in Amsterdam with the purpose of creating printing ink and paint. In 2017 she was joined by Lucila Kenny, and together they have been taking a deeper look into the way colourants develop in these plants, the different entanglements that affect this, and what it can teach us about ecosystems and relationality. Naan and Lu have always shared their knowledge, inspiration and insights with everyone through workshops and this book is entirely in that line of sharing. The book gives you practical information about dyes and inks from plants, it is full of beautiful images of plants and artworks by both Naan Rijks and Lucila Kenny.
We cordially invite you to share stories together on Friday 17 May at 7pm. Lucila Kenny and Barbara Collé will talk about the process of making the books, about plants, colours and life.
Flower, fruit, leaf, husk and root – Experiments in growing colour
Naan Rijks und Lucila Kenny
Mumbling Matter, 2023
Softcover Screen printed with inks from madder, indigo and walnut
€ 25,00
“This book is about a woman who, well into her eighties, still jumped on her bike with a young tree under her arm to plant it in good, fertile soil in a communal garden. And it also tells the story of another woman who got her most hopeful life insight from the transformation process of a plant.”