Frieze 91 Members are invited to an exclusive artist-led tour of Of the Oak, a groundbreaking digital installation by experiential artist collective Marshmallow Laser Feast, marking Kew Gardens’ first-ever outdoor digital art commission. Blending cutting-edge scientific research with immersive storytelling, this monumental work offers a unique perspective on one of Kew’s most remarkable trees. Members are welcome to stay and enjoy the rest of the day at Kew after the tour.
Standing as a six-metre-high LED portal, Of the Oak reveals the hidden life of the ancient Lucombe oak, one of the oldest and most significant trees at Kew. Originally planted on Syon Vista, the tree was moved in 1845 by landscape designer William Nesfield to better suit the landscape’s design. A rare hybrid of Turkey oak and Cork oak, it dates back to 1762. Through advanced technologies - LiDAR scanning, photogrammetry, and Ground Penetrating Radar - the installation visualises the tree’s internal processes, from nutrient absorption and water flow to carbon sequestration and its role in supporting over 2,000 species.
Marshmallow Laser Feast is celebrated for its innovative approach to storytelling, bridging art, ecology, and technology to unveil the unseen connections in the natural world. This special tour, led by artist and MLF director Ersin Han Ersin, offers an exclusive insight into the creative and scientific process behind this pioneering project.
About the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew is a world-famous scientific organisation, internationally respected for its outstanding collections and scientific expertise in plant and fungal diversity, conservation, and sustainable development in the UK and around the globe. Kew’s scientists and partners lead the way in the fight against biodiversity loss and finding nature-based solutions to the climate crisis, aided by five key scientific priorities outlined in Kew’s Science Strategy 2021-2025. Kew Gardens is also a major international and top London visitor attraction. Kew’s 132 hectares of historic, landscaped gardens, and Wakehurst, Kew’s Wild Botanic Garden and ‘living laboratory’, attract over 2.5 million visits every year.
Kew Gardens was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in July 2003 and celebrated its 260th anniversary in 2019. Wakehurst is home to the Millennium Seed Bank, the largest wild plant seed bank in the world and a safeguard against the disastrous effects of climate change and biodiversity loss.
About Marshmallow Laser Feast
Marshmallow Laser Feast (MLF) is an experiential artist collective. They believe in the power of stories to tickle senses and shift perceptions. Their work takes people on a multisensory journey to where imagination and information collide.
From coders to poets, chemists to ventriloquists, brands to institutions, MLF collaborate with specialists in all disciplines. To explore new forms of culture, interrogate our relationship with the world around us and leave a glittery slug trail as we journey through the cosmos.
MLF tell stories that untangle, entangle and flavour our reality, blurring the lines between art, immersive experiences, XR and film. Alive in galleries, museums, public spaces, parks, nature reserves and the metaverse, their work is grounded in research. Designed to carve out space to expose, explore and expand our relationship with the living world.
MLF has exhibited internationally at institutions including; ACMI, Barbican Centre, Somerset House, YCAM, DDB Seoul, Cannes Film Festival, Sundance Film Festival, Factory International, Quartier des Spectacles, SXSW, Saatchi Gallery, and Lisbon Architectural Triennale. Their work has been featured in renowned publications such as; the Guardian, New Scientist, Wired, Independent, Creative Review and more.