あずままこと
אזאמה מקוטו
아즈마 마코토
Адзума Макото
Water and Bonsai

In his continued forays into experimental botany that blur the lines between art and science, artist Makoto Azuma (previously) has reimagined the bonsai tree, one of the oldest Japanese artforms. This latest work titled Water and Bonsai, began with a dead branch from a juniper tree which was carefully attached to java moss meant to simulate the form of leaves. The entire piece was then submerged into a modified hydroponic environment similar to some of his earlier aquatic plantscapes replete with LEDs, a filtration system, and C02 emissions that encourage photosynthesis.
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Spirit Molecule
Spirit Molecule II, engages local community members as DNA donors to be memorialized in a site-specific commission for the Broad Museum at Michigan State University, created in collaboration with University scientist Dr. Bjoern Hamberger. The work consists of a large mound of moss growing in the gallery, with four embedded cylinders containing genetic memorial plants. In this iteration we embed both human DNA and a gene for the scent of patchouli into lab-strain moss Physcomitrella patens.