Reimagining Resilience. the Collective Imaginary, Artificial Intelligence, and Climate Change in the Future of Biodiversity.

Cornelius Castoriadis’ concept of the collective imaginary emphasizes its central role in shaping societal institutions, norms, and cultural frameworks. The imaginary is a dynamic force that influences how societies interpret reality and innovate, forming symbolic structures that underpin law, politics, art, and science.

This paper explores how Castoriadis’ theory intersects with climate change, using art as a critical lens by analysing the dystopian botanical atlas Hortus Artifis (Miranda de Almeida, 2024), inspired by Hortus Eystettensis (1613) that reimagines plant life under global warming. Using AI-generated images, this art project envisions resilient weeds adapting to climate stress, paralleling AI’s capacity for continuous adaptation.

Through 16 images of weeds, the work inquires on how art, co-creating with an artificial intelligence, can shape future imaginaries, presenting both symbolic and literal transformations of plant species. This creative re-imagining emphasizes the resilience of overlooked species like dandelions and nettles, symbolizing society’s need to rethink resilience and adaptability in response to environmental crises.

The project expands Castoriadis’ idea that the imaginary evolves in response to environmental pressures. Hortus Artifis uses speculative imagery to encourage reflection on society’s relationship with nature, technology, and the future. It exemplifies how the collective imaginary can be mobilized to address pressing challenges like climate change, highlighting the role of art in shaping societal transformation. Ultimately, Castoriadis' theory highlights the importance of the imaginary in the construction and re-construction of societal norms, and this artistic project becomes a vivid exploration of how the collective imaginary might be mobilized to address one of the most pressing issues of our time: climate change.