Aristia (or Ari @aristophylla) is simultaneously a student, plant stylist, collector, and environmental advocate. She strongly believes in the power of plants to transform lives. As a Life Sciences undergrad, she hopes to bring inclusive, sustainable, and nature-centric solutions to people, and use greenery as a platform to connect and heal. She cares for her plants, dog, and pet praying mantises at home in her garden and is assisted by her Mom.

Why do you love collecting and caring for plants?

I think plant keeping is really the perfect hobby because of all the freedom associated with it. It's liberating in its universality because you don't need to be inherently talented or artistic or smart to enjoy gardening, so anyone and everyone can get into it regardless of skill level and age. At the same time, there's an abundance of freedom in choice – if you want to explore the artistic aspect, or the scientific aspect, or a blend of the two, there's always an avenue to do it. And there are so many different genera and families to go into, so there's no lack of diversity apparent in the hobby. I think these two qualities of universality and diversity really make plant care very very enjoyable for not just me but everyone else in the community.

On a more personal level, plant care helps keep me grounded and mindful of myself and my surroundings. I often get so busy I lose track of the time but seeing my plants grow gives me a better, more tangible sense of the days passing, and also reminds me to take a step back to enjoy the little things in life instead of just mindlessly moving from one project to the next. Keeping plants also teaches you a whole bunch of life lessons, like learning to let go, to be patient, to share, about consistency and about love. It really makes you wiser leh!

As for the plant collecting aspect, I really enjoy the process of curation. My garden is my gallery, and a good variety of different plants allows you to appreciate both the differences and the similarities between individuals. I also really love learning about and studying different plants, and I enjoy the challenge and process of figuring out a plant's needs and where it'll do best in my house. I try to select a wide range of plants so I can get the full experience from every end of the spectrum.

How did you get your start?

How I started always makes me laugh. I think most people begin by buying a handful of greens for their house but for me it started when I watched Jenna Marbles' Youtube video tour of her plants, where she showed her Begonia maculata. I saw it and I was like “hmmm maybe I should try one…”, so I found some Begonias on Carousell and bought then. They, of course, promptly died within no time because who gets a Begonia as a starter plant, right? I actually also named them all after my friends, and that spurred me on to try to figure out how to actually care for plants because I didn't want plants named after my friends to die... and thus began my plant journey proper. This was mid-2019, I think. I remember it was months before my A-Levels. I would have my daily 'indulgence' of watering my plants in the morning before going to study for the rest of the day. Fun times.

How many plants do you have? What type of plants do you focus on?

Wow, I don't know. 400-500 I'm guessing.

Earlier this year I focused on Platycerium (Staghorn Ferns) and Orchids, and I'm currently getting into Nepenthes (Pitcher Plants), Homalomena and Gesneriads. I like having a good variety. I think now I hop around more than specialize, but my definite top favourites are staghorn ferns and orchids.

As I’m mostly away from home for uni, my mom has since stepped up to fill in the role of primary caretaker of my garden (no mean feat considering the intense daily demands!) and is the quiet but crucial force behind our green sanctuary.

What is your "process" in your plant journey?

I think I went from curiosity to aesthetic appreciation, and then a want to acquire a scientific understanding of how plants work and eventually to the larger topic of conservation and coexistence with nature. Of course, it isn't a strictly linear flow – sometimes I would bounce between these stages and learn more about different aspects of plant keeping. For instance, I used to be a very "function over aesthetics person" last year. I only ever bought plants, never pots, because at the time I felt like studying and observing plants should be the only thing a 'serious collector' prioritises. But after joining my current job I learned more about plant styling and interior design, which gave me lots of insight on how beauty can be used to entice more people to care about the natural world, as well as a source of everyday joy and pleasure.

I'd like to think this flow from physical appreciation to greater understanding and then speaking up for the injustices against the environment is a progression that can be achieved for most people, not just me. We all start off wanting plants because they're pretty and beautiful and they make our space look nice, then maybe the ephemerality of a fleeting blossom piques your interest, or the elegance of an unfurling new leaf catches your eye, and you want to know more, you want to know why. So science and questions of "how" and "why" fill your Google search, and you realize, "damn, there's so much to know and learn." It's a constant process of learning and unlearning. There's really so much about plants to find out, and so much that has not even been discovered. I love that. I really love learning about them.

I also definitely grew a lot during these 2+ years in the hobby as a person! I started out as an excited, starry-eyed teenager who really didn't know anything about the world or about plants. I got into some ups and downs along the way but I think the young lady who came out of it is a lot stronger and wiser than she ever could have been if she didn't experience some of those difficulties.

Why did you pick this plant to be featured with you in your portrait? Is there a story behind it?

My Thaumatophyllum 'African Fantasy' is easily one of my favorite plants in my collection. I got it when it was small and barely a quarter of the current size. I'm quite proud of how big it's grown in the past year. Whenever I feel dejected about plant deaths, this guy continued existence really consoles me.

The Platycerium Wandae (Queen Staghorn Fern) is a cute little one sold to me by a good friend who, I think, has one of the best plant collections and gardens in the whole of Singapore.

The Anthurium Moonenii was also a birthday gift from another friend in the plant community – he propagated it from his own mother plant. It's one thing to get a beautiful wishlist plant, but another when it's passed to you from friends who went like "hey I know you like these, would you want one?". It really allows you to stop and remember that in this community it's not just all about plants and gardening, but also about the people and the heart behind the greenery. I think we always tend to forget that there is someone behind the plants we see on Instagram, someone who waters and cares for and loves these plants.

Describe the most significant challenges in your plant journey?

I think because I'm so passionate about plants, along the way I kind of made it an integral and large part of my core personality. So there was a time when I got turned down repeatedly by various dream academic and career opportunities in the field of plant studies. This made such a really huge impact on my life because it demoralized me. I realized eventually that too much of my life was revolving around plants – my career now and in the future, my studies, my hobby, my close friends, etc. – and I needed to rediscover who I was beyond Instagram, beyond the garden. So I took a step back from Instagram for almost a good 6 months to really search for who I was and regain a sense of self outside of the 'public eye'.

And I think I've found it.

Photographer: DGT Portraits
Producer: Quinn Lum
Space: Studio 2020