It is a glorious spring day at the New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx: hundreds of peonies bloom with vivacious and unapologetic passion as they form a ribbon alongside the path to the conservatory, the lush green foliage glistens under the sun, still fresh with morning dew; vultures, peacocks, and other mysterious creatures descend and nestle among the horticulture, children, and students running around the gardens. The New York Botanical Garden’s special summer exhibit “…things come to thrive… in the shedding… in the molting…” (2023), debuts new and site-specific work by visual artist Ebony G. Patterson mixed in with the diverse plant life the garden.
The exhibit contemplates the entanglements of race, gender, and colonialism, looking at the ideas of molting, shedding, and decay and their potential to give way to healing, regeneration, and beauty. Installed both outdoors across the Haupt Conservatory Lawn and indoors in the Conservatory’s Seasonal Exhibition Galleries, Patterson uses sculpture to create bold and provocative disruptions to the colorful and fragrant flower displays.
