el palo alto medicine
Site-specific Drawing, Herbal medicine and related objects
Variable Measurements
Palo Alto Art Center
Palo Alto, 2022
Embodied in this project is the city of Palo Alto, its communities, their stories, and its ecology. This multidisciplinary art project consists of a site - specific mural and a vitrine containing medicinal remedies and related objects.
Inspired by the story of El Palo Alto (the tall pole, in Spanish), the oldest redwood tree in the area and the one that gives the city of Palo Alto its name, and in collaboration with local community garden members, I created herbal remedies using the leaves from this legendary, ancient and iconic redwood tree and from plants and herbs from the community gardens around the Palo Alto Art Center.
This installation culminated in a community ritual, a tea ceremony with the public gathering around the artful preparation, presentation, and enjoyment of the El Palo Alto Redwood Tree tea.
Connecting the past with the present, this project offers the public a tool to engage in the creative process for spiritual development and healing. It invites the public to connect with ancestral medicinal practices and explore art as a mystical practice that can contribute towards healing, transformation, and social change.
Variable Measurements
Palo Alto Art Center
Palo Alto, 2022
Embodied in this project is the city of Palo Alto, its communities, their stories, and its ecology. This multidisciplinary art project consists of a site - specific mural and a vitrine containing medicinal remedies and related objects.
Inspired by the story of El Palo Alto (the tall pole, in Spanish), the oldest redwood tree in the area and the one that gives the city of Palo Alto its name, and in collaboration with local community garden members, I created herbal remedies using the leaves from this legendary, ancient and iconic redwood tree and from plants and herbs from the community gardens around the Palo Alto Art Center.
This installation culminated in a community ritual, a tea ceremony with the public gathering around the artful preparation, presentation, and enjoyment of the El Palo Alto Redwood Tree tea.
Connecting the past with the present, this project offers the public a tool to engage in the creative process for spiritual development and healing. It invites the public to connect with ancestral medicinal practices and explore art as a mystical practice that can contribute towards healing, transformation, and social change.
VIDEO
Time lapse filmed and edited by the Palo Alto Art Center
El Palo Alto Tea Ceremony
With the public gathering around the artful preparation, we invoked the healing powers of redwoods while enjoying redwood tea. United we called for strength, wisdom and resilience to stand up for climate justice.
