A Japanese Artist Launches Bonsai Into Space
Azuma Makoto, a 38-year-old artist based in Tokyo, launched two botanical arrangements into orbit: “Shiki 1,” a 50 year old Japanese white pine bonsai tree suspended from a metal frame, and an untitled arrangement of orchids, lilies, hydrangeas, and irises.
The project, called Exobiotanica,, was a collaboration between Makoto, his 10-person crew, and JP Aerospace, an organization that sends vessels into space. They used massive helium balloons and high-tech styrofoam-and-metal-frame carriers, with plastic parachutes that deployed once the balloons lost pressure and fell to a thicker atmosphere. The contraptions, named Away 100 and Away 101, were recorded from the ground and accompanied by “six Go Pro video cameras tied in a ball.”
After both pieces went up, Makoto said. “This is a dream come true.”
