Unconquered Natures - Topicalism.

TEXT BY DAN BROWN

"Camila Ospina Gaitán’s new commission examines the logic of colonialism through the lens of orchid collection—an 18th- and 19th-century practice in which collectors from the global north were sent to the -West Indies, South America, the Indian Peninsula, and Southeast Asia- to plunder the most exotic and coveted specimens of these delicate flowers. This operation, conceived and executed by men, was justified under the guise of noble intentions—to protect, cultivate, and bring the unknown under scientific scrutiny. It echoed the familiar paternalistic rhetoric of colonial powers, who framed imperial expansion as a civilizing mission, despite its foundation in violence and exploitation. Driven by the forces of capitalism, racialisation, and extractivism, this process not only reshaped landscapes and societies but also reinforced structures of domination that persist to this day.

In this installation, Gaitán transforms the space into a nursery of rare specimens, uprooted from their native soil. These moving sculptures intertwine history, fiction, and science to reflect on the enduring repercussions of colonial resource extraction in her native Colombia. Her works trace the lasting impact of colonialism, exposing the harm inflicted on people, landscapes, and ecosystems while navigating the intricate entanglement of love, care, and violence. Consistent with her previous explorations of the sexualisation and objectification of the female body, this installation extends these inquiries by situating them within a broader colonial framework. Under colonial rule, the female body was subjected to forms of control, commodification, and violence that paralleled the exploitation of land and resources. By drawing these connections, Gaitán’s work not only critiques the extractivist logic of colonialism but also interrogates its enduring presence in contemporary cultural and aesthetic discourse."