My father was a carpenter and always told me stories about trees, their wounds and scars. Often the damaged parts of the tree are thrown away. But with some trees, they can become something extraordinarily valuable – their scent is said to heal the soul and to bring people closer to the gods. It‘s the Agarwood – the central figure of my project „Scent of Heaven“

The first official report on Agarwood dates from 1534 by Garcia de Orta, a Portuguese biologist who traveled to Southeast Asia¹. Yet before de Orta‘s discovery, the scented wood is said to have been one of the spices used to apply to Jesus‘ body after his crucifixion². Nowadays, Agarwood is often used in the perfume industry and is still a symbol of wealth and high society. However, it is the very result of the suffering of the Aquilaria tree. The trees have to endure years of pain and are cut down en masse, although only a small percentage of trees can produce agarwood. Due to its high quality and rarity, the harvesting and production of agarwood are heavily influenced by Vietnam‘s history under colonization.

The main goal of my project is to uncover the process inside the tree and how its value changes depending on our perception. For this project, I conducted research and worked in different places and contexts: visual and field recordings in plantations in Vietnam and CT* imaging at the Institute of Biomechanics (TUHH). In doing so, I focused on the process of agarwood‘s formation and interpreted the wood as something alive. I translated this interpretation into the form of a dance performance accompanied by the geo-sonic sound recordings from inside the trees.

¹ Lee, S.Y., Mohamed R., The Origin and Domestication of Aquilaria, an Important Agarwood-Producing Genus, In: Agarwood, Science behind the Fragrance. 2016. Refers to: Ridley H.N., Garu and chandan. In: Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland Straits Branch, 1901, 35-36.
² New Testament, Gospel of John, 20:39-40. Here agarwood was referred to as „aloe“, one of the spices that Nicodemus brought with himself when he visited Jesus after his crucifixion.
* CT: computer tomography

Installations: Treescape Show und VR

The project was presented up until now in 2 formats: a treescape projection installation in Planten un Blomen Hamburg, and a VR Installation at the CAPA contemporary Center, Budapest. For more details from each show, please click on the images following.