Plant Power

 

Outdoor muralist Thiago Mazza has been commissioned by the owners of 195 Mare Street to create a botanical mural inspired by the exotic plants imported by Loddiges Nursery, whose long-since demolished Hackney hothouse was one of the largest in Europe in the early nineteenth century. 

Many of the palms, bamboos or ferns growing in Hackney's gardens today are thought to be direct descendants of the plants introduced from all over the world, many from Mazza's home country Brazil as well as from the homelands of Hackney's current residents. 

For Plant Power, the artist selected a variety of hydrangea which is native to China and amongst the many species included in the nursery's plant catalogue. He based his sketches on a specimen growing in a neighbouring garden. Passers-by will be able to witness the growth of the mural from an intriguing grid of inspiring words to a vibrant painting covering a four-storey wall overlooking the front of the house. 

The mural is intended to add colour to a neglected section of Mare Street as well as encouraging conversations about the migration of plants and people, colonial exploitation of natural resources and the implications of climate change for nature.