LA PIANTA. LA MEMORIA E NOI, 2026
LOCATION: Austrian Cultural Forum Rome, Viale Bruno Buozzi 113, Rome, Italy
DATE: 24.03.2026 - 17.04.2026

​

part of the series

"Archives of the Living: Painting Endangered Plants and Material Ecologies."

​

La Pianta. La Memoria e Noi explores the fragile relationship between biodiversity, memory, and human coexistence through a series of paintings dedicated to rare and endangered plant species found in Italy.

Rather than treating these plants as botanical specimens, Ruth Mateus-Berr portrays them as living carriers of history, mythology, cultural memory, and personal stories. Each painting brings together scientific research and symbolic imagery, placing plants, humans, and objects within the same visual narrative.

​

The rare and threatened species at the centre of the series become metaphors for vulnerability, resilience, care, and hope. Their preservation is understood not only as an ecological responsibility, but also as a way of safeguarding the knowledge, stories, and cultural connections that have grown around them.

​

Through this intersection of art, ecology, mythology, and research, Mateus-Berr invites us to look at plants differently—as active participants in our shared world rather than passive subjects. The paintings transform endangered flora into intimate and powerful symbols of coexistence, while creating unique works that carry both botanical significance and emotional resonance.

​

For collectors, each painting offers a singular encounter with a rare species and the story surrounding it—an opportunity to preserve, through art, a fragment of a living archive that is increasingly at risk of disappearing.