Materia Viva is a work in progress dedicated to aromatic raw materials: resins, plants, woods, essences, balsams, flowers, seeds, roots.

It arises where scent, word, image, and research meet. Of each material, what matters is not only its effect, but everything that accompanies it: where it comes from, which landscape generates it, which hands have gathered it, how it has become a symbol.

It is at once a cultural notebook and a sensory experience. Each material is traced back to its origin, through lands and customs, ancient trade routes, archives, faces, and sudden intuitions. Starting from a resin, a wood, a flower, the thread is followed: clues are gathered, the scent is listened to, an image is pursued, until a form surfaces.

Part of this work lives in texts and digital publications; another part becomes original artwork, printed in fine art.

The latest issue is dedicated to Camellia japonica. Here is an excerpt:

I close my eyes. My fingertips move across the skin of my face — tapping lightly, tracing small circles. I use an oil that flows easily, weightless to the touch. I bring my fingers to my nose, and this time the scent is the faintest thing: no floral fragrance, but rather a delicacy that speaks directly to the skin — making it immediately supple, glad. This is how I first meet Camellia japonica, a plant with full, red flowers that seems at first to promise perfume, and instead delivers care through the oil pressed from its seeds.

You can receive a free PDF copy by writing to us via the WhatsApp button on the site.