Laboratory of Longings

This is a living installation in which the sweat of a couple is harvested to feed a field of carnivorous plants. Built as a reversal of the human-plant relationship in agriculture, this is a living installation where human sweat is harvested for plant consumption. A speculative biofiction, the apparatus attempts to harness the potentials of biotechnology to create an olfactory capsule of an emotionally charged moment.

medium: living installation
Apparatus: steel, foam, vinyl enclosure, funnels, tubing, fluorescent bulbs, six 250-watt heat lamps
Human Couple: Teresita Cochran and David Jesser
Plants: Nepenthes x ventrata and Nepenthes sanguinea
Sweat collected over two days: 227 cc

dimensions
4’ x 7’ x 6.5’

year
2017

exhibitions
Boston Center for the Arts

tags
biofiction, longing, olfactory