In collaboration with the University of Zurich, We Are AIA presents Botanical Memories: A Performance Series at the Botanical Garden Zurich. Taking place in the summer of 2025, this artistic program features performances, workshops, and lectures exploring both ancient and evolving knowledge of medicinal plants.

Set against the backdrop of the Botanical Garden, the series addresses the loss of traditional medicinal plant knowledge. The site's historical context fosters a dialogue on healing practices beyond Western medicine. The events will look at personal and collective relationships with plants and healing techniques, accessibility to nature, histories of migrations within human and more-than-human, and beyond.

If We Listen, Do Microbes Sing Our Stories?
Saturday , August 16, 2025 / 17:00 / 90 minutes
New Botanical Garden, Zollikerstrasse 107, 8008 Zürich

The sound installation in the greenhouse will be accessible on Saturday, 16.08.2025 and Sunday, 17.08.2025 from 9:30-16:45

If We Listen, Do Microbes Sing Our Stories? is an audio-installation performance by Nora Hauswirth, Maya Minder, and Kaspar Koenig. The immersive sound installation combines soil and storytelling in the Botanical Garden Zurich. The performance invites visitors to experience the presence of microbes, to touch the earth and to discover—through sound and narration—the role of microorganisms as agents of metabolism in soil ecology. It raises awareness of the fragility of tropical, biodiverse habitats and the loss of biodiversity by focusing on the importance of microbes for plant growth and human well-being.

Nora Hauswirth (CH/BR, 1983) lives and works in Switzerland and Brazil. An activist with a master’s degree in curating from ZHdK, she has worked with various museums on exhibitions and intercultural projects, including Cabaret Voltaire, Manifesta 11, Openki.net, and others. Since 2017, she has been researching agriculture and sustainable food systems and founded Arte & Escola na Floresta in Manaus, in the Amazon, in 2019. She has realized various exhibitions as an artist and curator on the topics of soil and food, including at the Gallery of the State University of Manaus, Museum Mühlerama Zurich, and ASAP Geneva, Switzerland.

Maya Minder (CH/KR, 1983) is an artist, fermentista, and organizer based in Zurich. She founded the Open Science Labat Zentralwäscherei Zürich and has exhibited at Jeu de Paume, Ars Electronica, and Kunsthalle Zürich. She has received funding from Pro Helvetia, Migros Kulturprozent, and the Gubler Hablützel Stiftung. She has led workshops and given talks at ZHAW, ZHdK, and ETH Zurich. As a curator, she works independently and in collaboration with the International Hackteria Society. She studied Art History at the University of Zurich and holds an MA in Fine Arts from ZHdK.

Kaspar Koenig (CH/NL) is an artist and lecturer exploring the connection between sound and nature. His work investigates the acoustic dimensions of the environment, particularly the interactions between plants and sound. Chants for the Plants was an early reference project that combined music and environmental awareness—each note and every planted tree telling a story of hope and collective action. The initiative merged art and activism to foster a deeper awareness of our planet.

Credit: Nora-Hauswirth-Participative-Agriculture-2024-Manaus