YANN GROSS

Drift

Photography, mirrors, Chusan palm (Trachycarpus fortunei), 2026

In Ticino, palm trees are gradually overtaking parts of the forest, turning the undergrowth into a hybrid landscape that feels both exotic and familiar. Introduced to Europe in the mid-19th century, the tree in question – the Chusan palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) – soon spread widely, prized as it was for its ornamental qualities. Over time, the species has come to embody a form of botanical globalisation closely tied to Western colonialism and intensive cultivation.

With Drift, Yann Gross uses multispectral imaging to reveal how, in the forests of eastern Switzerland, the Chusan palm – a non-native tree – has spread far and wide, surpassing its original ornamental function, altering local ecosystems and competing with native species for space. In doing so, he draws attention to the all-too-common gap between the promises behind such changes and the realities they ultimately produce. The palm tree placed at the centre of the installation exemplifies that very contradiction: although the species has existed in the region for less than 200 years, its presence here now feels entirely ordinary.

The history of Szilassy Park itself is tied to these 19th-century movements of plants across the globe: English landscape garden designers prized exotic tree species for their ornamental qualities, leading to the introduction of non-European varieties such as the giant sequoia, eastern hemlock and Atlas cedar. These imported trees embody the complex histories connecting different parts of the world – and the contradictions such exchanges can produce.

Yann Gross (CH, b. 1981*) lives and works between Spain and Switzerland.