These organ-shaped ceramic vessels are molded of earth and will be returned to earth. Van Laarhoven has chosen to bury each one at a site meaningful to her. With only their mouths peeking out, they will form womb-like spaces beneath the soil. Made of low-fired ceramics to allow moisture to seep through, they will become underground instruments or capsules to collect sounds, fluids, and smells. Their sensitive bodies bypass the intellect to register the yet unknown.
Rooted also dives into Van Laarhoven’s own origins. Born, raised, and trained as a landscape architect in the Netherlands, she was struck by how deeply the desire to shape nature is rooted in Dutch genes. Driven by the belief that there must be other, unlearned attributes dormant in her cultural DNA, her research looks for alternative ways to reconnect with our natural environment. Giving birth recently to a child triggered latent memories of a seemingly forgotten past that altered her self-oriented perception of reality. She investigates how such life-changing moments can also shift our relation to the land and how we are attuned to its desires.
Rooting – first sketch of an idea that is still growing
Painting of sloped forests in South Limburg, with different microclimates in a 100 m section.
