Escaped Exotics Volume II: Melaleuca Monocultures PROJECT MAP
 

ONE SENTENCE DESCRIPTION

Escaped Exotics is an ecological multimedia series exploring unseen histories latent in the anatomies of invasive non-native plant species embedded within the landscape of South Florida.
 

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

Collection of Short HD Color Videos with Original Soundtrack ( >10 min length)
Ecological text (offered in English, Spanish, and Haitian creole) annotates video visions unfolding amidst the fragrance of antibacterial essential oil produced from local foliage.
Print materials including Field Guides featuring texts on Melaleuca and 3 other invasive species will distributed to audience members in Spanish, English, and Creole from within the installation/viewing arena. Limited edition locally sourced invasive Melaleuca Quinquenervia Essential Oil (Naouli) assists in the multisensory element of the installation illustrating the properties of the plant.

DISTRIBUTION AND AUDIENCE

Escaped Exotics embraces the current material realities of the natural world through not only media but also by literally utilizing the beneficial properties of invasive species for distilled essential oils.

Melaleuca Quinquenervia is a direct relative of Melaleuca Alternifolia. Oils from Melaleuca Alternifolia are harvested and sold commercially as Tea Tree Oil, a common ingredient in beauty cleaning and health products. Like Alternifolia essential oil, Quinquenervia is a powerful natural antiseptic but has a milder scent. During filming, myself and my associates will collect leaves and produce a small batch of Tea Tree Oil to release along with the film as a sensory attraction and a material illustration of the tree’s properties.
 

Because Escaped Exotics proposes new conversations on ecology audiences for the film include scientists, journalists, naturalists, tourists, and policymakers and of course a are a South Florida bioregional audience.

Films interpret neglected disturbed sub/urban sites to encourage a sense of radical biophilia that embraces the present realities of human impacted natural systems. Nature therapy focused on regions deemed as imperfect examples of nature is a valuable and pragmatic evolution/extension of traditional conservation oriented parks and recreation programs. The health of ecosystems portrayed in this film directly impacts Florida residents. Florida audiences may directly access sites physically and have some voice in policies toward land use and management.

 

Screenings of Escaped Exotics Melaleuca Monoculture may take place in an installation where audience members can explore the physical materials produced to compliment the film. Ideal screenings take place in an enclosed area where the film loops activated by the dissoluted scent of Melaleuca essential oil and printed guides to 4 invasive plants of South Florida are made available to browse in English Spanish and Haitian Creole.