theresa tree a performance art piece by Theresa Byrnes 2008

theresa tree
performance at Rogue Studios, New York City, 2008

Identity
non-existence
Tree / Wind
Existence beyond consciousness
Art / nature
A mark, a trace, a shroud, a stain
Theresa Tree


Bobbi Bennett wrote
at 9:48pm on August 26th, 2008
This was great to work on. A journey into tree consciousness. The sun-burst eyes opening at 3:25 sets it for me. Numerous other zoom-ins to eyes open upwards lets you feel it more; a tree-awareness of UP and of Light.
And that rough-cut plank of wood you are bound to tilted out to match the perspective of the towering trees: wizard!

Theresa Byrnes wrote
at 6:54pm on August 27th, 2008
Ya, it was great for me to work on too. After visualizing, editing, engineering the thing, to actually stand up and have the trees projected on me, wow. It was a powerful contemplative moment worth all the craziness leading up to it. By the way, Bobbi Bennett, you are the best assistant in the universe. It's great to have you on board the ship of Rumi's dreams.

Bobbi Bennett wrote
Robert Bly (his translations are where I first read Rumis poems) in his 'poems of two-fold consciousness' brings up the question 'if nature has consciousness, is there a dark side to it?'. This is in the course of his study of the awareness of nature's consciousness unfolding in poetry over the ages.

It is curious that in all his studies of the subject in this book, I find no parallel to your performative work. Perhaps it was off topic from his expository goal.

Bobbi Bennett wrote
Yes, it isn't odd that 'performative contemplation' is not mentioned in a book about poetry.

But he comes awfully close with this:
"... each time a human being's desire-energy leaves his body and goes out into the hills or forest, the desire-energy whispers to the ear as it leaves: "You know, one day you will die." I think both men and women need this whisper; it helps the human to come down, to be on the ground. When that whisper comes, it means that the tree-consciousness, the one in the wooded hill, and the one in the man, have spoken to each other. The human being grows sad then, knowing that he or she is an animal who will die."
That is in 'A Meditation on a Poem by Goethe'.

Theresa Byrnes
The contemplation on trees is for me about tuning in to the origin of life/death, perhaps even the meaning or non-meaning of existence & our human irrelevance in the shadow of nature. Trees pre date mammals. If God is air (Prana), than trees are the mother of God. To me this is worth contemplation.

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