For several thousand years people have lived on Sapelo Island, modifying its terrestrial and marine ecosystems in deliberate as well as unexpected ways. The natural environment of Sapelo is defined first by its extensive saltmarshes whose rate of photosynthesis rivals the most productive kelp and rainforests. These saltmarshes, fed by rivers and tides, support numerous invertebrate (oyster, crab, snail) and vertebrate (bird, fish, mammal, reptile) species and serve as nurseries that disperse animal populations well beyond Sapelo, inland as well as into the ocean.

These interacting species use chemistry as a language to communicate and exchange information. The odors of Sapelo also imprint memories on human residents and visitors, but these odors are sensitive to environmental degradation and loss of community. This project will seek to restore ocean memory by capturing the scents of Sapelo in a multisensorial exhibition, translating the chemical structures of coastal scent molecules into soundscapes, paired with perfumes created from the odor sources of Sapelo saltmarshes, forests, beaches, and swamps.