The Hortus project is an open investigation into the nature of seemingly common objects through "Floriography", urban gardens and the history of women's rights. Hortus was inspired by the urban gardens of Amsterdam West and created with its plants by Lilia Luganskaia.
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\nJoanna Cresswell on the Hortus :
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\nHistory teaches us that a language of flowers can communicate an infinite amount about the culture in which it emerged, and this is where Lilia Luganskaia’s interest lies. Drawing on the world of sentimental 19th-century flower books, Hortus presents itself as a set of notes for a modern textbook of contemporary floriography, considering what the discipline might look like today. Collecting common plants over a year in the urban gardens around her home in Amsterdam and cross-referencing their meanings with publications from the past, Luganskaia reflects on their natures, their roles, and the symbolic familiarity they may have for the communities that live with them. A 21st-century artist and reader, she seeks the essence of modern life through her lens, and through flowers, just like the women who came before her.
