Meet Mumbai's Dutch diplomat who makes assemblages with creepers, vintage stuff

Martijn Lammers, a diplomat and artist, has found his passion introducing creepers in vintage knick-knacks

Dutch diplomat, Martijn Lammers with his plant-meets-typewriter assemblages, Laura Green and Jack Green, named after his wife and son. Pic/Pradeepâu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Dhivar

At Martijn Lammers' home in Nepean Sea Road, ask for Aladdin and chances are that you will be introduced to a plant that clambers out of a copper kettle. Lammers, a Dutch diplomat who has been a Mumbai resident for the last year-and-a-half, creates peculiar assemblages using creepers and vintage objects.

Solemnising an odd but fascinating marriage between the metallic and the botanical, Lammers, 44, says that he is yet to coin a word for what he creates. That doesn't stop him from christening them, however. Take Laura Green for instance, a philodendron that bristles out of a typewriter like a fountain. Laura is named after Lammers' wife. There is another that is named after his son, Jack. "I have my family here, but I also consider these plants as my green family," he says. He adds that back in Leiden, the university city in South Holland where he is from, he has a dozen or more of these assemblages.

In his sea-facing apartment thoughtfully studded with indoor plants and vintage knick-knacks, Lammers explains that he trains plants that have aerial roots into these unusual planters, and then lets the plant take shape. If it sounds simple, it is only because Lammers underplays it. He also keeps an overall form and aesthetic in mind while digging deep into his reserves of patience to allow nature to do its job. "It may not sound like a lot of work for me, but it is certainly a lot of work for the plant," he laughs.

Trained in organic chemistry, Lammers works as a science and technology officer at the Dutch consulate. His profile, he says, can be described as an ambassador for Dutch tech companies to be set up in India, and for Indian companies to take root in The Netherlands. When he is not busy at the embassy, Lammers scours Chor Bazaar for vintage objects. "I like repurposing objects, such as these typewriters, which were once useful," he says. He points at plant Laura, in which the typewriter clutches on to a sheet of paper. "I imagine what the typewriter would have been used for at one point — a manuscript or even typing a love letter. I may be romanticising it, but I like the idea of the plant feeding off that energy," he explains.

His artistic side has been cultivated for long. Showing us some heavy-duty glass sculptures he has made in the past, Lammers says that the back-breaking process has made him shift to easier tasks, but that's not the only reason. "I want to explore something that is more dynamic, which is why I introduced plants to these metallic objects," he says. Lammers often receives suggestions to display his work in niche design studios; he also hopes to show his green family at a local art festival. What he really wants to do, however, is close to a takeover by the natural world over the mechanical. "I want to leave them somewhere and return to see how the plants have grown in five years. Will the roots have taken over the typewriter keys?"

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