The Vegetable Parliament: Seeding the Milpa

Welcome to our milpa*.

If we could lend vegetables a voice, what would they say? Would they sing? Would we listen?

This summer, The Vegetable Parliament will find its home in our garden with an outdoor installation by artist José Délano. The public art project – that explores the milpa as a metaphor for an imaginary more-than-human societal model – kicks off with an opening event on the 14th of March: Seeding the Milpa.

Come and get your hands dirty while you listen to the stories of Mayan seeds that will grow into vegetables and slowly bring this Parliament to life. The event will be led by the collective Tlayolan, Maiskultur in Berlin.

* an ancient Mayan agrarian practice, a field for growing food crops used throughout Mesoamerica.

Our milpa
The milpa consists of flying potatoes, edible flowers, climbing pumpkins, hanging watermelons and different kinds of coloured beans, among others. We travelled here from various Mayan milpas in Southern Mexico – where we had been for centuries, but now we are on different grounds… they call it Berlin. In our ecosystem, resources (water, light, soil) are used in a complementary way, and all participants benefit from each other’s presence. We were brought here to slowly weave onto a temporary installation that will become our parliament.

Here, we get together – humans and non-humans – to grow, to connect, to create something new. A place built by feelings, cosmovision, social relations, biodiversity and knowledge. Here, we dream of new realities. At its core is a living inhabitable installation; a speculative parliament for utopian visions and possible futures of local socio-/ecosystems. As it evolves throughout the seasons, each visitor and each activation becomes an intricate part of the milpa. 

Visit us, become a part of us. We invite you to think differently, to leave any preconceived ideas of the possible behind. To play seriously, or as children play – when we play, we believe it.

Programme
14 Mar 2025: part one SEEDING THE MILPA

09 May 2025: part two BUILDING THE PARLIAMENT

Jun-Jul 2025: part three THE GROWING SESSIONS

14 Aug 2025: part four THE VEGETABLE OPERA

13 Sep 2025: part five THE CONQUERING BANQUET

Friday, March 14
Atelier 1
Start: 5 pm
Free admission
 

Team
Artistic Director: José Délano
Garden Concept: Montserrat Peniche, tlayolan Maiskultur in Berlin
Curator “The Growing Sessions”: Christian Hiller
Musical Director “The Vegetable Opera”: Nicholas Bussmann
Author “The Vegetable Opera”: Santiago Elordi
Food Artist “The Conquering Banquet”: Inés Lauber
Industrial Design: Felipe Araya
Graphic Design: Susann Zielinksi
Public Relations: Wayra Schübel
Text: Lianne Mol & José Délano
Documentation: Edgard Berendsen
Creative Producer: Lianne Mol

“The Vegetable Parliament” is funded by Hauptstadtkulturfonds.