The Waiting Gardens of the North

I was very lucky to be able to attend a recent talk by Michael Rakowitz at Baltic and was moved and impressed by the way he uses his art to raise difficult political issues. His work is such a timely reminder of the power of art to instigate dialogue and peaceful yet powerful political action.

The following text is from Baltic’s website:

https://baltic.art/whats-on/va-michael-rakowitz-the-waiting-gardens-of-the-north/

Michael Rakowitz:The Waiting Gardens of the North

Open Wed-Sun, 10am-6pm until Sunday 26 May 2024

A Letter from Michael Rakowitz

Hello!

It is good to be with you here. I must confess: I am not a gardener. My wife is the one with the green thumb, and I have always envied those who dig in the dirt and help new life take root. I have an early memory of the garden my Iraqi grandparents planted on Long Island, New York, but my mother told me recently it wasn’t much — just some cucumbers, tomatoes, and watermelons. As a child she was tasked with its maintenance, although how much of it ended up on the plate to eat is not clear.

When I was invited to conceive a garden for the IWM 14-18 Legacy Fund commission at Baltic, I was immediately drawn to the Level 4 Gallery, whose ceiling windows run the span of the space on both sides. Normally, these windows are covered in blinds to protect artwork from sunlight. By removing the blinds, the gallery could become a makeshift greenhouse.

For the past 17 years, I have worked with my studio team to reappear the archaeological artifacts looted and destroyed in the aftermath of the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. One sculpture — taken not during the war but in the late 1800s and currently held in the British Museum — is a gypsum wall relief panel from the North Palace of Nineveh, made between 645–635 BCE, depicting the gardens of the Assyrian King, Ashurbanipal, which predated the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. A local team of artists has worked with my studio to make a monumental version of this relief out of the packaging of West Asian, South Asian, and African foodstuffs used by many of the people that have arrived to the UK seeking sanctuary, who now reside in Newcastle and Gateshead. The colors on the panel are those that archaeologists believe were used on the original stone panel. The architectural footprint of the North Palace of Nineveh is recreated in the layout of the garden beds, shelves, and workstations behind the panel, on the gallery floor. 

The Hanging Gardens of Babylon were believed to have been built during the reign of the Neo-Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar, who ruled from 605–562 BCE. According to one legend, the gardens were built for his wife Amytis, who missed the forested mountains and valleys of her native Media, located in modern-day Iran; a garden to cure homesickness.

These two gardens, built under two empires, serve as a point of departure for The Waiting Gardens of the North. The project was inspired by Baltic’s status as a Gallery of Sanctuary and by its strong, ongoing relationships with local charities that provide services for those who have fled their home countries due to the continued impacts of imperialism, colonialism, racism, war, and oppression. The Waiting Gardens of the North features trees, plants, flowers, and herbs requested by the local community of migrants, who miss aspects of their home landscapes, and wish to make them take root, whilst they wait, hopefully, to take root themselves. A hanging garden for lives hanging in the balance.

Our garden is meant to be harvested and features four stations: for tea-drying, spice-grinding, distillation of tinctures, and cooking, which will be activated on specific dates throughout the next year. Many displaced persons are temporarily resettled in places like hotels, where they do not have access to kitchens; unable to host, they are perpetually stuck in the position of guest.[i] My hope is that this space can support them to become hosts at Baltic.

The Level 5 Viewing Box offers a beautiful view of NewcastleGateshead. From up there it is also possible to see an aerial view of The Waiting Gardens of the North and how its aqueduct lines up with the one depicted in the ancient panel. It is believed that cities first formed when people decided to cook and eat together. Here is an opportunity to build a new place, one where those looking for home are welcomed as equals. And so, in closing, I offer a traditional Arabic greeting, familiar enough that we often forget the beauty of its meaning: Ahlan wa sahlan. May you arrive as part of the family and tread an easy path as you enter.

Love,

Michael

https://baltic.art/whats-on/va-michael-rakowitz-the-waiting-gardens-of-the-north/