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Traveler I origin - what and who belongs
s travelers
Exotic Pittosporum undulatum split and one half used for Traveler's body
travelers
test1: trunk of Laurus Azorica and driftwood
with bag of rocks - too heavy - it sunk (!)
travelers
test2: trunk of Pittosporum undulatum and
Morella faya, driftwood pole & lava stones -floated
TRAVELERS & MEDIATORS
Azores, 2023

Traveler I genealogy:
Much like a persons family tree, the origin of this Traveler is complex:

[...] The dense native forests in the Azores were decimated after the systematic coloni-zation of of the territory from 1439. Looking for new wood sources, countless exotic species were introduced around 1850. One of these were Pittosporum undulatum, native to Australia and one of the first species to arrive in Europe after the maritime expeditions to Australia. [...] Today this invasive species is present in all the Azorean islands, and has profoundly changed the appearance of the Azorean landscapes. The split trunk of Traveler 1 unites the heritage of Pittosporum undulatum and the native Morella Faya, while its floaters are made from Cryptomeria japonica, a Japanese species introduced to the Azores in the 1950s where the pine tree is now farmed.

Extracts from biologist Maria João Trota's description of wood from San Miguel used in the Travelers.    Download pdf

As newcomers ourselves we are intrigued to explore further when and what makes something or somebody
endemic or native to a place.