SISTER UNN'S FLOWER SHOP

72-32 Austin st.
Forest Hills, NY 11375
Bunny Rodgers & Filip Olszewski
2011 - 2012

SISTER-UNNS.COM
HERE LAYS YOUR ROSE
In autumn 2011, an enigmatic flower shop appeared without prior announcement on a well-to-do shopping street in Queens. It never opened to the public, but passersby would peer through the window at the lines of drying flowers that lined its shelves, and the single rose encased in a block of ice in an illuminated freezer; occasionally, they would leave flowers. Curious about the store, they might seek it out online, where they would find an equally mysterious website that dedicated an animated rose to each visitor.
The storefront awning read “Sister Unn’s,” and the interior was lit only by a glowing freezer, emptied of everything but a lavender rose preserved in a block of ice.
Drawing its title from characters in The Ice Palace, a 1963 Norwegian novel that explores a community’s process of mourning, the work offered parallel, linked sites for the processing and sublimation of trauma and grief, online and off.
Referencing anonymous gifts left at a graveside or vigil, the site is also curiously game-like: the existence of more and less common flowers (most common is light purple, whfilripile glittering transparent roses are rare) makes each visit feel like rolling a die.
“THE FACT THAT PEOPLE COULDN’T ENTER MADE IT A DIORAMA, IT FLATTENED IT. IN A WAY, IT WAS LIKE A REAL LIFE NEOPETS GALLERY.”

—BUNNY ROGERS
As winter came to a close, so did the project. A farewell letter was posted on Sister-Unns.com, and a For Rent sign appeared outside the store; an online clothing boutique moved in, then a vape shop, and then another. The city’s churn had reclaimed the shop that was frozen in time.
““IN MANY WAYS IT’S THE END OF AN ERA. THIS STORE IS ALL WE’VE EVER KNOWN.”

GOODYBYE, SISTER UNN'S