One Tree ID / Agnes Meyer-Brandis (DE); photo: Ars Electronica / Birgit Cakir

One Tree ID

Agnes Meyer-Brandis (DE)

One Tree ID โ€“ How To Become A Tree For Another Tree by Agnes Meyer-Brandis is a unique biochemical and biopoetic experiment exploring olfactory communication between humans and plants.

The project utilizes air moleculesโ€”volatile organic compounds (VOCs)โ€”emitted by all plants. These compounds not only contribute to cloud formation,but are also responsible for the characteristic โ€œforest scentโ€ and act as a communication system between plants and insects. For the exhibition, the specific VOCs of an Araucaria tree from the Department of Urban Greenery and Street Maintenance, Linz are transformed into a perfume that visitors can apply to their bodies. Through this act, visitors enter into a dialogue with the surrounding trees, transforming the communication between humans and plants into a sensory experience. 


Credits: One Tree ID โ€“ Araucaria heterophylla was realized in collaboration with Prof. Dr. Manuel Selg and Klaus Krennhuber, Molecular Biology and Chemistry Department, Universityof Applied Sciences Upper Austria and Marc vom Ende, Senior Perfumer, Symrise. 

With the support of the City of Linz