Kapwani KiwangaOn Growth, 2023
Commissioned for the 2023 High Line in New York, Kapwani Kiwanga produced the outdoor sculpture ‘On Growth’, a sculpture of a fern encased in glass. The multi-faceted case is constructed from dichroic glass, which captures and transforms the light that passes through it, changing tone and colour as it’s viewed from different vantage points. The work references Wardian cases, a predecessor of the terrarium, which were used to transport uprooted plants to Europe from overseas, allowing those species to continue to thrive amid London’s polluted air in the late 19th century. These enclosures resembled jewellery cases at the time and, similarly, often protected treasures from distant lands. 'On Growth' draws on the colonial histories of institutional and commercial botanic nurseries that heavily influenced the scientific understanding of plants and horticulture of today. The sculpture was on view on the High Line in New York between November 2023 to February 2025.
