My work is a personal investigation into plants, history, memory, territory, and belonging. Moving between photography, found imagery, collage, painting, and drawing, I have explored how experiences of place and relocation shape memory and the emotional connections we form with the environments we inhabit.
Over the years, the presence of plants gradually increased in my work as I began to see them as wise, loving, and compassionate beings who had welcomed me in foreign lands. Plants became both a bridge to the past and a guide to navigate toward the future, embodying symbols of resilience and continuity amid change.
Initially, plants entered my work as metaphorical motifs, offering a way to reflect on the construction and reconstruction of memory, especially as shaped by the experience of migration. Over time, I moved away from symbolic interpretations and began to approach plants through a more ontological and ecological lens, recognizing them as living beings with histories of their own.
Recently, plants have become a constant presence in my practice. I have started to adopt their perspective, recognizing that they are not very different from us. Plants, like humans, can be uprooted, transplanted, and naturalized. They can be considered lifelong neighbors, invasive intruders, or welcomed additions to new environments. They must learn to adapt to a new location before they can thrive, or adjust to changing conditions to survive.
This dynamic has led me to ask questions about the connections we form with plants, in both symbolic and tangible ways: How have we seen and interacted with them? What kinds of relationships have we cultivated or neglected? And, ultimately, what does it mean to share this period of environmental challenges with them?
oN MY PRACTICE
Leila Ali is a Colombian visual artist and independent art researcher, living and working between Austin, Texas, and Tustin, California.
Ali obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Fine Art from the Academia Superior de Artes de Bogotá. She also holds two master’s degrees: one in Cultural Studies from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, where she graduated with a Mention of Distinction awarded by the Faculty of Human Sciences, and another in Aesthetics and Art History from the Universidade de São Paulo in Brazil.
Most recently, Ali completed the Certificate in Botanical Illustration at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh in Scotland and is currently enrolled in the Diploma in Botanical Art (DipSBA) with the Society of Botanical Artists in the UK.
Her work has been widely exhibited in Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Australia, South Korea, and the United States.
BIO
2025 Solo exhibition at Dougherty Arts Center - Julia C. Butridge Gallery | “Plants Consumed” | Austin, Texas – USA.
Foundry Art Centre | "Botanical Art Worldwide - A More Abundant Future" | The American Society of Botanical Artists (ASBA) | Saint Charles, Missouri – USA.
2024-2026 Austin City Hall | Peoples' Gallery Exhibition | Austin, Texas – USA.
2023 Solo Exhibition at Wild Basin Preserve Creative Research Center | “Plant Blindness” | Austin, Texas – USA.
Solo Exhibition at Austin Studio Tour | ¨Botanicals and Collage¨ | Austin, Texas – USA.
2021 Campbelltown Arts Center | “Fisher’s Ghost Art Award” Finalist exhibition | Sydney, Australia.
L.A. Photo Curator | “This Land is Your Land” International Exhibition | Los Angeles, USA.
2020 CICA Museum [Czong Institute for Contemporary Art] | “Objects” - International Exhibition | Gimpo-si, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea.
2019 Campbelltown Arts Center. | “Fisher’s Ghost Art Award” Finalist exhibition | Sydney, Australia.
LensCulture | “Art Photography Awards 2019” Competition Gallery | Online.
2017 Inspire9 - Industrial Creative Space | “Portable Kits” Digital Photography | Melbourne VIC Australia.
2012 Museum of Contemporary Art [MAC] and Multimedia Studio of the Electronic Computer Centre [CCE] University of São Paulo [USP] | “Ubicidades” - Experimental Encounter of Digital Aesthetics | Brazil.
Galería Santa Fe | “Proyecto Rosa” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
2009 La Silla Vacía Information Center | The Empty Chair Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
2006 Marginal Art | “Semana” Week Exhibition | Bogotá.
2002 Art Faculties Pontifícia Javeriana University and National University of Colombia | “Arte en Conserva” Itinerant Exhibition | Bogotá.
2000 El Museo Gallery | “Alternatives in Process” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
Espacio Alterno Gallery | “Imágenes que Navegan” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
Portobello Art and Design Centre | “El Arte de Dar” Exhibition and Auction | Bogotá, Colombia.
Espacio 3300 Gallery Exhibition | “Reconstrucción de un Crimen – Reflexiones en torno al. Collage” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
1999 Ministry of Culture | “Frente en Blanco – De la Tolerancia al Afecto” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
Museum of Modern Art | Exhibition “Primeros Premios Salones Nacionales de Artistas 1940- 1998” | Bogotá, Colombia.
La Samarita Hospital | “Salúd Plástica!” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
1998 Jorge Tadeo Lozano University | “Nuevo Arte Latinoamericano” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
1997 Gilberto Alzate Avendaño Foundation | “Salón de Agosto” Exhibition | Bogotá, Colombia.
Solo Exhibition at Galería Sala ASAB - Superior Academy of Arts of Bogotá Gallery | Graduation work “Realidad Paralela” | Bogotá, Colombia.