Mira O'Brien

Artist Tour: Painting the Secret History of Weeds

13:45 – 14:15

Join artist Mira O’Brien for a guided tour of her artwork on view during the conference. Mira will discuss both the concepts and the process behind the paintings, which monumentalize the weeds of Berlin through large-format works that draw on the history of botanical painting and contemporary urban ecology. Many of the weeds found throughout the city have long histories of medicinal use, pointing to an intimate relationship between plants and the human body. What can we learn through close observation of the volunteer plants that persist in our midst? What new models for relating to plants might emerge once the hidden histories of these accidental hedgerows are revealed? Mira’s paintings take us on a journey through art historical references ranging from medical herbals and flying salve recipes to Sottobosco and Baroque flower painting, before returning us to the landscapes of our own backyards, seen through a new lens. Mira O’Brien is an internationally exhibited artist and the founder of Berlin Drawing Room (a school for drawing and painting where she also teaches botanical watercolor).

Botanical Art as Knowledge Production (ENG)

12:00 – 12:30

What can we learn through the process of close observation required for drawing and painting? The history of ecology leads us back to the figure of the Naturalist, who was both scientist and artist. Recent methods for knowledge production, as a result of AI and big data, sever the link between a "result" and how it was arrived at. It was therefore critical to revisit methods for primary knowledge production, including art making.