SOULS IN TREES
Why do kids love to hug trees?
Why do we continue to embrace them our hole life?
Why do poets for thousands of years told about the soul of the trees?
It all started when I had to buy a Christmas tree in Italy with Vigga Bro. In the middle of the plant nursery courtyard stood a hundred-year-old olive tree. It reminded me of two old people who embraced each other. And because I was happy and in love I photographed it. In the evening at the restaurant, I showed the picture to Vigga and my friend Catullo Manciocchi. And Vigga told the ancient Greek myth of the first olive tree. Created by Zeus and the two old people who had loved each other a long life and now saturate the days were allowed to leave it in an embrace and be turned into an olive tree. The following day Catullo showed me the area of beautiful old trees, and I came home with a treasure of trees: There were lovers who held each other, there were warriors who were lonely, there was H. C. Andersens (the danish writer) Dryad from the history of the Parisian tree’s soul (which Vigga told) there was Enter in Tolkins – Lord of the Rings, there were all kinds of creatures! Since that day I have – in collaboration with Vigga Bro – worked on my project about trees soul, soultrees or whatever we should call them.
Concept
The concept seeks to arouse a sensuous and adventurous emotion in the viewer/spectator. The concept consists of multiple sensory experiences:
- An exhibition of my works that depict the creatures that appears in the trees.
- A performance where Vigga Bro tells stories about trees that have soul, and inhabited by creatures. For example, the story of the olive tree – Viggas interpretation of a Greek love myth. With bassist Ida Bach Jensen will weave together words and music to the stories.
- A lecture where Catullo Manciocchi tells about Olive’s characteristics and presents a selection of his olive products. There will be opportunity to taste olive oils, bite into a fresh olives and sample soaps and lotions made from olive oil.
- The book Soul of Trees – the complete works of art project intertwined with the stories.