The work “Eucalyptus: sound archive” was part of the 14th Biennial of Media Arts in the Tercer Paisaje exhibition at MNBA. It consists of a stainless steel operating table on which there are dozens of 30cm juvenile eucalyptus trees, audio files and collaborative observation sheets.

The work “Eucalyptus: sound archive” is a participatory device and a way to connect eucalyptus trees with their own history in Chile, through sound stories based on public records about this species. We call these objects stowaways, as they are installed in unusual places — transit, access or residual spaces — almost imperceptibly invading museums.

The main object consists of a stainless steel operating table on which there are dozens of juvenile 30 cm eucalyptus trees. These small trees form a sort of scaled forest plantation on the metal surface of the table.

In addition, three recordings extracted from public archives sound from the same table: an extract from the book “Los 7 árboles forestales más recomendables para el país” (1909) by Federico Albers; the Decree Law 701; and audios of the 2015 forest fires in Chile extracted from YouTube.

An observation sheet invites visitors to write their own diagnosis and treatment of eucalyptus in Chile.