The presence of gods and spirits inhabiting the natural world is a recurring motif in the work of Dutch artist Melanie Bonajo and Spanish filmmaker Rocío Mesa. In both artists' films, nature is personified through carefully crafted beings composed of the very elements that define her: flowers, leaves, wheat, and grass. Appearing as both animal and anthropomorphic figure, she is richly adorned with the flora of her own essence. To answer nature’s call for a renewed emotional and mental connection is to don her luscious vegetation – to wrap ourselves with her leaves and blossoms.
Matrix Botanica Netherlands, 2013. Dir. Melanie Bonajo, 23min
In Melanie Bonajo’s Matrix Botanica, spirits garbed in ceremonial attire fashioned from plants and greenery wander meditatively through the forest, serving as messengers for the more-than-human realm. Their slow movements and ritual gestures create a sense of communion between human and vegetal worlds, inviting viewers to contemplate their relationship with nature’s sentient presence. Through these lush, performative
tableaux, Bonajo offers a vision of kinship that transcends conventional boundaries between the human and nonhuman.
Tobacco Barns (Secaderos) Spain, 2022. Dir. Rocio Mesa, 98min, Spanish with English subtitles
In Rocío Mesa’s award-winning debut fiction feature, young Vera and teenager Nieves embark on a coming-of-age journey shaped by their encounters with a magical plant spirit – a gentle guardian adorned in leaves, tendrils and rural flora. As the children and this enigmatic creature connect, the film interlaces fashion, costume, and nature at the heart of its magical realist vision. Here, garments and natural adornment become a language of belonging and transformation, celebrating how rural fashion draws meaning and vitality from its environment.
With an introduction by festival co-founder Christel Tsilibaris.
Christel Tsilibaris is one of Fashion in Film Festival’s co-founders, and its co-curator until 2008. She is an art historian and curator, currently serving as the Curatorial Projects Coordinator at the Centre for Fine Arts – Bozar in Brussels. Her recent curatorial work at the museum includes the exhibitions Love is Louder and Monira Al Qadiri: The Archaeology of Beasts (both 2024-2025). She has recently expanded her involvement to collaborate with Bozar's Cinema Department on their "Art + Film" series, where she acts as an advisor and curator for select projects.