The garden is rich with imagery, colour, and form. Please join us as we amble through the camellia collection, contemplate the herbal and medicinal garden, and stroll beneath the canopies of oak trees in search of the stories and ideas planted in each bed. Art Historian and slow looking practitioner Olivia Meehan will guide this walking tour through the Royal Botanic Gardens in search of slow time, while making connection with art and literature along the way.

What to expect:

· A 90-minute walking tour of the Abbotsford Convent and Deep Rock area.

· A small group with plenty of opportunities for discussion and questions.

· While every effort will be made to accommodate mobility levels, please note the tour will involve approximately 3km of walking outside, including across uneven surfaces.

Olivia Meehan is an art historian and object-based learning specialist. She concentrates on slow looking and contemplative pedagogies in discipline-led curriculum design to support visual intelligence and imaginative thinking. Olivia received her Master of Philosophy and PhD in the History of Art from the University of Cambridge, where her graduate research focused on the circulation of cultural material and ideas in early modern Europe and Japan. Since graduating she has worked in museums and galleries, and as a lecturer and tutor in the History of Art. She is the author of Slow Looking: The Art of Nature (Thames & Hudson) 2025.

Questions? Contact arts-engage@unimelb.edu.au

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