Grässtrårörelsen

Grass Movement
Vandalorum, Värnamo

As part of the Småland Biennale, the art and design museum Vandalorum in Värnamo will launch the Grass Movement this summer, an educational project linked to the ongoing creation of the monumental artwork by Dutch garden designer Piet Oudolf on the museum's grounds. The aim of the Grass Movement is to highlight the garden as a democratic art form and experimental space, as well as to raise awareness of its significance for biodiversity, dynamic social interaction, and well-being. The project will include, among other things, a plant and cultivation-based art camp for children and youth, cultivation workshops for the museum's design school, open guided garden tours, the establishment of volunteer activities, knowledge dissemination through social media and publication, and participation in launching a pilot project for collective satellite gardens at municipal multi-family housing in Värnamo.

Piet Oudolf (b. 1944) is a Dutch garden designer who has created gardens at the Serpentine Gallery, London (in collaboration with Peter Zumthor); The High Line Park, New York City; Vitra Design Museum, Weil am Rhein; and Hauser and Wirth, Somerset. More than 10 books have been published about his artistic work, including Planting the Natural Garden (2003/2019, Timber Press), Landscapes in Landscapes (2011, Monacelli Press), Hummelo: A Journey Through a Plantsman's Life (2015/2021, Monacelli Press), Wild: The Naturalistic Garden (2022, Phaidon Press), and Piet Oudolf at Work (2023, Phaidon Press). The documentary film Five Seasons: The Gardens of Piet Oudolf, directed by Thomas Piper, premiered globally in 2017 and has received awards at international film festivals. Piet Oudolf has participated in exhibitions at MoMA, New York (2005); Hauser & Wirth, Somerset (2014); and Vitra Design Museum, Germany (2023).