09.05.2026 – 31.10.2026
The exhibition, curated by Barbara Müller and Maria Zengerer, focuses on five flowering crops: flax, potatoes, runner beans, pumpkins and maize. It traces the cultural history of these crops, from their significance for the indigenous populations in their regions of origin, through their adoption by explorers and conquerors, to their subsequent establishment in Europe. Potatoes, runner beans, pumpkins and maize only reached Europe from the ‘New World’ after the discovery of America. Initially, they were cultivated primarily as ornamental plants in botanical gardens and princely gardens, before later gaining importance as foodstuffs. Flax – the oldest cultivated plant in Central Europe – also indirectly provides the title for the exhibition: The idiom “a journey into the blue” may originally have referred to travelling through vast, mostly blue-flowering fields of flax. Today, agriculture faces challenges such as newly introduced pests and increasing extreme weather events, which are exacerbated not least by climate change. The exhibition also addresses these aspects and current challenges.
Fields in Bloom – A Journey into the Blue
09.05.2026 – 31.10.2026
Landwirtschaftsmuseum Schloss Stainz
Schlossplatz 1, 8510 Stainz
www.museum-joanneum.at/museen-schloss-stainz
