People’s Plant Museum

PPM is an experimental arts institution and living archive dedicated to exploring the relationships between people and plants. Founded by artist Emma Duehr in 2019, the museum operates as both a physical plant collection and a growing digital repository of personal narratives, interviews, and exchanges surrounding plant care, propagation, and cultural significance.

Originally housed in a Southeast Portland residence, PPM reimagined the domestic interior as a site of curation, participation, and dialogue. Every plant in the collection has been acquired through community-based exchange—via cuttings, donations, and trades—and is accompanied by a documented story reflecting its social and geographic lineage. This evolving archive honors plant-human entanglements while challenging the commercialization of plant culture by foregrounding relational value over financial worth.

Through tours, participatory events, workshops, and an online resource library, PPM serves as a space for reflection on cohabitation, memory, and the cultural practice of plant exchange. It invites visitors to share stories, propagate new connections, and participate in a broader inquiry into the role plants play in shaping identity, home, and collective memory.

Guest curators and collaborators are invited to contribute to The Collection and help grow the Museum’s reach into both domestic and public space. As the project continues to evolve, People’s Plant Museum remains committed to documenting and celebrating the shared histories that live between humans and the plants they care for.

TALKING TUSHIES

Talking Tushies embroiders sexual violence statistics on patches for clothing items and invites survivors around the world to share their experiences with sexual misconduct. These accounts are shared and archived on the project website and in sculptural installations. People are invited to wear the Talking Tushies patches on locations of the body associated with unsolicited sexual objectification to confront the male gaze in public places. Participants can purchase the patches or follow a do-it-yourself template for the project; the project also hosts workshops for participants to create their own patches. Individuals around the world wear the patches and collectively transform everyday public spaces into a collaborative protest against disrespectful sexual behaviors.

The project’s online presence invites participants to discuss issues related to sexual violence, share their stories, and submit photos wearing their patches. Outside of the United States, Talking Tushies has an international community with participants in Africa, Canada, France, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Talking Tushies works to continue the history of women who transform domestic arts practices into political activism. Talking Tushies was created to empower women to walk fearlessly and with confidence while navigating public spaces.

PATCHES

Talking Tushies are hand embroidered patches which state sexual assault statistics which cover various ages, genders, and situations. These patches are made to be sewn onto the back pocket of pants to use our bodies and clothing as a platform to protest sexual violence in daily settings. The statistics are sourced from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, RAINN, (Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) Participants can be purchase the patches or follow a DIY approach to the project. Talking Tushies was created to empower women to walk fearlessly and with confidence while navigating public spaces.

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SHARING STORIES

Beginning in 2018, I organized an online platform for sexual violence survivors to share their experiences with sexual violence. I want to create a space that helps people feel comfortable and confident in sharing their stories while making connections with one another. The stories of assault, rape, and harassment are intended for a public viewing to raise awareness on the truth behind frequent common experiences.

* Trigger Warning *

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