Evolution in motion
Utrecht University Botanic Gardens, Utrecht (NL) , 2025
In the new Evolution garden at Utrecht University Botanic Gardens, visitors take a 900-million year journey through key moments in the evolution of plants.
Plant evolution
In the Evolution garden, visitors walk along a yellow path that follows the course of plant evolution. from mosses to ferns, and from sturdy trees to exuberant flowers. The garden is laid out according to the current scientific classification of plant orders and families. Studio Louter developed the interpretation at eight key moments: spots in the garden where visitors can read, observe, and discover how plants have adapted and evolved.
Movement
Through a pressure cooker session, we developed the concept for the garden: Evolution garden, always in motion. The concept emphasizes that evolution has no endpoint. Just like plants, which adapt to seasons and conditions, the Evolution garden is also in motion. A curling path, designed by Hemelse Natuur, symbolises the branching and movement in plant evolution. We chose this path as the visual common thread across all signs: as a navigational tool and recurring visual identity.
Key moments
At each key moment, there is a large sign with clear texts, a scientific illustration, and a timeline that clearly shows its place in evolution. A Viewing Tip invites visitors to actively make connections with the greenery around them.
Artworks
An artistic installation, designed in collaboration with Studio Tjep., marks each key moment. These artworks represent the evolutionary step in an abstract way and follow the concept of movement: sometimes the visitor sets something in motion themselves, such as a lever, other times, it is the visitor’s own movement that reveals the message, as in the ‘field of stomata’.
Photos by Mike Bink
Credits
Client
Utrecht University Botanic GardensContent Design
Studio LouterGraphic Design
Studio LouterProduction art installations and information boards
Studio Tjep.Construction
Kloosterboer