Piet Oudolf: Dreamscapes

In the autumn of 2025, the exhibition Dreamscapes opened from September 7 to November 30 in the monumental Kunstkerk Dordrecht. Originally built as a church, the building has been transformed into a cultural venue for exhibitions and events. Situated in front of the venue lies a garden designed by internationally renowned landscape designer Piet Oudolf, known for his poetic planting style, distinctive color palettes, and organic forms. His gardens can be found around the world. A defining part of his creative process is his handmade, colorful garden drawings. Dreamscapes presented a selection of Oudolf’s gardens through photography, drawings, and poetic storytelling.
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Exhibition and Graphic Design
Dana Dijkgraaf
Production
Kunstkerk, Tetos, Probo

Concept
Walking through Oudolf’s gardens often evokes a dreamlike and immersive atmosphere, which formed the conceptual starting point of the exhibition design. The exhibition translated the layered and organic experience of wandering through a garden into a spatial narrative. Visitors moved through different environments, mirroring the sensation of discovering landscapes gradually and intuitively. Transparency, layering, and movement became key elements, reflecting Oudolf’s design philosophy and his way of working with seasons, growth, and transformation.

What did we create?
Upon entering the venue, visitors stepped into a spatial landscape divided by a semi-transparent curtain that created an organic environment with portals. This allowed visitors to wander freely and discover different gardens throughout the space. The softly colored curtain varied in height and featured floating photographs, semi-transparent drawings, and text panels, giving each garden its own position within the exhibition landscape.

As the venue also functions as an event space, the exhibition system was designed to be flexible. The curtain installation could be lifted toward the ceiling, allowing the space to transform when needed. Along the church walls, gardens were presented through large-scale photographs layered with accompanying drawings.

Oudolf’s recognizable drawing system, consisting of colors, shapes, and structures symbolizing specific plants, trees, and flowers, formed an important visual foundation. The colors of the curtains and text panels were derived directly from this system, creating a harmonious dialogue between the exhibition design and the gardens themselves. Each text panel was given a unique shape inspired by the symbolic forms found in Oudolf’s garden drawings. In several areas, carpets featuring colors and shapes derived from his flowerbed compositions were placed within the exhibition.

In the attic of the church, visitors could watch a documentary while seated on large cushions designed in the same visual language, extending the immersive experience into a more intimate setting.

Sparkles
Typography played an important role in strengthening the atmosphere of the exhibition. A modern typeface with a subtle fairytale-like character complemented the dreamy spatial design. Photographs were printed on matte, color-enhancing material with colored backs, while drawings were printed on semi-transparent material referencing Oudolf’s original drawing paper.

As a final detail, shapes inspired by Oudolf’s drawing system were applied as small colorful markings on the large church windows. When sunlight entered the space, the symbols appeared to move across the floor, creating a magical and constantly changing experience similar to the dynamics of a living garden. A subtle soundscape of natural garden sounds combined with delicate fragrances inspired by Oudolf’s plant selections completed the immersive exhibition experience.

www.kunstkerk.com/agenda/piet-oudolf-dreamscapes

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