In Fourteen Leaves and a Cup of Water, Michelle Piergoelam (NL) explores the botanical knowledge of enslaved communities in Suriname. This knowledge formed an important source of strength and resistance. Enslaved people recognised plants in the Surinamese flora that were related to species from Africa and understood which leaves had medicinal properties and which plants were edible or poisonous. They also knew how these plants could be used to survive their situation – even to poison their oppressors. This deep-rooted expertise enabled them to endure harsh conditions, escape, survive, and establish free communities in the dense rainforests of Suriname.

For this project, Piergoelam travelled to Suriname, her parents’ country of birth, for the first time in 2024. During her journey through the rainforest, she photographed plants first described in 1755 by the Swedish biologist Daniel Rolander. As a European observer, Rolander documented the use of plants in Suriname and recorded exchanges of knowledge between enslaved people and local communities. His accounts of resistance, from everyday acts to courageous escape attempts, and his observation that enslaved people knew the forest ‘like the back of their hand’ became an important source of inspiration for Piergoelam. Through collaboration with biologists from Naturalis and local partners in Suriname, including Irvin Ristie, who guided Piergoelam through the rainforest, and shaman Amashina Oedemmaloe, the project intricately connects art, shamanism, and science.

Many traditional customs in Suriname have remained largely unchanged. Cups are still carved from the white wood of the kwasibita tree and filled with water or alcohol; the bitter drink is used to combat malaria fever. The highly poisonous drunguman (drunkard), named after the staggering gait that results from drinking the herb, is no longer used to poison Europeans, but lives on in herbal baths intended to ward off supernatural enemies. Suriname, a multicultural society with exceptional biodiversity, has thousands of local plant names, not all of which have been documented. Nearly 270 years after Rolander, the Surinamese rainforest continues to hold new stories waiting to be heard and made visible.

Within this broader practice, Fourteen Leaves and a Cup of Water forms the third chapter of Piergoelam’s ongoing project The Untangled Tales (2020–present), in which she explores sources of hope and strength among enslaved people in Suriname. Her work centres on underrepresented histories, oral traditions, and the resilience of cultural memory. She focuses on stories preserved through unwritten means, such as folklore, rituals, secret languages, songs, clothing, and plants, with a particular emphasis on Surinamese heritage and the legacy of transatlantic slavery.

Fourteen Leaves and a Cup of Water is co-published with Naturalis Biodiversity Center.

Concept and Photography: Michelle Piergoelam
Design: Sybren Kuiper (-SYB-)
Production: Jos Morree (Fine Books)