Ingela Ihrman's Performative Nature Wonders Blend Botany, Costume, and Political Resonance

Ingela Ihrman creates elaborate wearable costumes and performances that bring natural wonders to life, from blooming plants like the Giant Water Lily (Victoria amazonica) and Giant Corpse Flower (Amorphophallus titanum) to animals such as a giant otter and a Russian Cave Goat. Her work references childhood influences like the Jan Lindblad Film Festival (2010) and Swedish nature programming from the 1960s and 70s. Performances often feature botanists or gardeners providing commentary, evoking 19th-century public bloomings. Ihrman's practice engages with hobbyism, craft, and amateur theatre traditions, contrasting with contemporary consumer culture. A notable piece is the Stegocephalia from Bjuv, a wearable reconstruction of an extinct amphibian whose fossil was found in a Swedish coalmine. In 2013, she donated this costume to the Bjuv municipality, where 15% of the population supports the anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats party, adding a political layer to her exploration of landscape and climate change. Her work blends the playful and disturbing, transcending mere escapism to offer new ways of experiencing nature.