“Plant”
1994/95
Work in progress ENLARGE IMAGE
Plant was a project in which a large, live plant was stitched inside a leather coat by hand. The coat was meant to be a warm and protective environment for the plant and gave it some kind of esteem. At the same time it was of course also that what prevented the plant from growing and would eventually cause its death.
It took me about three months to stitch the plant inside its coat. Every single leaf took about a week in time. But while I was doing this some strange kind of competition started between the plant and me. Every time that I stitched one leaf inside leather, the plant would grow a new one! So at some point I had to work with a tight time-schedule in order to ‘overtake’ the plant. As you see I did win. I exhibited the plant and it died as expected. After the exhibition I stored the remains away in someone’s basement. But when I looked it up 10 months later, 3 huge sprouts had burst out of the leather and started growing some enormous new leafs again. So, actually I lost the competition in the end.
The plant is now having a quiet life at someone’s home…
Photography: Bas Wilders ENLARGE IMAGE after one year
