Incubatorium Botanicum
Where nature and culture become one, decay (en)counters preservation.
Mingling with traces of former use – black smuts over the fireplace, floors “dancing” in a seeming reflection of the wavy vaults of the high cellar ceiling – the Palace becomes a new habitat for both human and nonhuman creatures. Manmade objects synchronise with the microclimate, turning the architectural structure into an experimental incubator.
Once derelict and abandoned, the villa now hosts the studio’s experimentations and long-term observation, both indoors and outside. Nature literally acts as a host there, reacting to our presence – and the objects we implant there – with gentle hostility.
For us, nature here is an endless source of inspiration. Through observing its growth and steady decay, we are constantly pushed towards rethinking the mark we are leaving there.
Learning from nature's ways, we learn to implement the cycles of growth and decline in our own projects.
In constant dialogue with the ever-changing surroundings, our creations aim to highlight, protect and observe nature's fragile beauty and negotiate the value we bestow upon it.
Through subtle, contemporary micro-interventions, this villa is brought to life yet again.
We always dreamt of a space that could combine the contradicting realms: the natural with the manmade, the decaying with the preserved. The void spaces of the palace, and the age-old park surrounding it, give a meaningful setting that resonates with the new contents.
With the sense of deep time surrounding the entire space, we navigate to develop a new chapter in villa's history.
Working with the past heritage, present capabilities and with future scenarios in mind, we aim to redefine Swidno’s function as a laboratory for our ideas, a gallery for our works and a platform to grow our foundation.
