Giselle Beiguelman's 'Botannica Tirannica' at Museu Judaico de São Paulo Examines Racist Plant Names and AI Bias

Giselle Beiguelman's exhibition titled 'Botannica Tirannica' at the Museu Judaico de São Paulo explores the racist and anti-Semitic histories embedded in botanical nomenclature. In a garden of weeds planted outside the 1930s synagogue, visitors encounter a ledger indoors that lists species by both Latin and common names, including Wandering Jew (Tradescantia zebrina) and Jew's Thorn (Euphorbia tirucalli). The show brings attention to offensive plant names, such as 'Mulatto girl's bottom' for Thunbergia alata. Beiguelman illustrates the link between botanical classification and colonial authority through her drawings, featuring seeds from economically significant plants with troubling names, alongside AI-generated videos of 'Frankenstein' plants, indicating that machine learning may reinforce historical prejudices. The exhibition is open until 18 September.