From 1 to 6 pm. workshop / collective action for children and adults: Activation of Zheng Bo's instruction

For the opening of this chapter of the exhibition the public will be invited to activate Zheng Bo’s Instruction "Drawing Weeds Practice" created for the exhibition.You are invited to turn off your phone, walk in silence and chose a plant that speaks to you. Connect with the plant through drawing it. Afterwards burry your drawing and wait for the microbes to break it down.

This practice is carried out daily by the artist Zheng Bo himself and forms part of his ongoing series "Drawing Life" that is currently on show at Gropius Bau Berlin.. Making a drawing of a plant every day aims to get closer to these related beings, to change our relationship with the plant and to go beyond the conventions of drawing. The point here is not to "know how to draw" or to know the name of the plant, but to share a moment with this living being and share the sheet of paper that ends up composting back in the soil.

3 pm. Guided tour of the exhibition with curator Bernard Vienat (in French)

The exhibition at the Espace Wilsdorf, renamed “Espace Terre” for the occasion, displays in several languages the instructions conceived by the artists. Installed using the city’s existing infrastructure, clearly visible for passers-by, they attract attention and stimulate a more detailed reading. Next to explanatory texts, QR codes enable direct access to the website of the project. In addition to being a place of passage inviting the public to stroll in the shade of the trees that border the exhibition, the Earth Space is also the center of workshops throughout the summer for young people in summer camps and secondary school classes.

4 pm. Mini-conference of Ewa Renaud on urban biodiversity (in French)

A qualified biologist, Ewa Renaud is a scientific assistant at the HEPIA, Geneva. After working in various professional positions related to land use projects, both in Switzerland and West Africa, Ewa Renaud specialised in the vegetation of urban mineral surfaces and, more specifically, in green roofs. An expert in her field, she has been sharing her knowledge and skills in this area for over ten years now, not only with HEPIA bachelor students, but also with partners outside the institution.

As part of the (re)connecting.earth exhibition, Ewa Renaud will present her work on green roofs to the public and open the discussion on "Nature in the city" in a more general way. 

▶ Espace Wilsdorf - Rue Hans Wilsdorf - Geneva, Switzerland