Olfactory Map of Populus (2011–12)
Wundergarden, Concordia University, Fluxmedia, Loyola Campus, Montréal
Olfactory Map of Populus was the first installation presented in Wundergarden, a semi-permanent outdoor gallery designed to support interdisciplinary projects between the visual arts and the life sciences. Developed in collaboration with Fluxmedia and the Despland Laboratory (Biology), the project transformed an active plant-science experiment into a public, sensory-based artwork.
The installation featured six species of hybrid poplar trees used in entomological research on caterpillar feeding preferences. Rather than emphasizing quantitative scientific outcomes, the work invited visitors to compare the subtle scent differences of the trees, creating an olfactory map based on perceptual experience. This subjective mapping paralleled the biologists’ studies of leaf selection, translating scientific methods into an accessible participatory encounter.
Located outdoors in a shared courtyard between the Science and Communication buildings, the Wundergarden functioned as an open-air exhibition site where living materials, interdisciplinary collaboration, and public engagement could converge. The project introduced a hybrid model of dissemination, part exhibition, part field lab, foregrounding how research, plants, and people intersect within an urban campus environment.
Olfactory Map of Populus initiated a long-term partnership between Fluxmedia and the Despland Lab and helped establish Wundergarden as a space for experimenting with sensory perception, multi-species interaction, and the expanded role of vegetal life within contemporary art practice.
Project with Flux Media + Dr. Emma Despland Lab, designed/fabricated by jenna dawn mclewan