DISTILLED ESSENCE

Sturt haaga gallery, los angeles, ca (2023)

Distilled Essence is a scent and sculpture installation showcasing transparent flora I planted inside decanters and hand-blown perfume vessels. Although all plants are recognizable by form, the ghostly bodies are decellularized, void of biological identity, and preserved as singular plant tissue. The works represent specimens in an afterlife—a collection of souls stripped of identity, united by the universality of experiencing life and death.

⚘ Merging science, scent, and art, this exhibit celebrates our intrinsically connected oneness in mortality — a Distilled Essence of nature ⚘

The Distilled Essence glass works are inspired by the world of alchemy, combining design elements from decanters, apothecary show globes, and perfume bottles. The vessels, titled Memory of Mankind, represent containers for invisible identities of nature captured through distillation - alcohol, medicine, and essential oils. 

Each vial contains a fragrant oil, conceptualized from “distilling” transparent flora. This aroma highlights notes of Linalool, a synthetically isolated molecule, gently fragrant and abundant in nature, yet seldom experienced in its pure form. Due to its ubiquitous presence in hundreds of plant species, this compound symbolizes the fragrant essence of the botanical kingdom.