"There are many different worlds and many different suns. But we only have one world. But we each live in different worlds." Dire Straits / Brother's in Arms
Technology has always been the cradle of miracles. Today, we have made things that science fiction writers dreamed of come true, thanks to technology. Today, the fast pace of life that most of us live in, the high-tech electronic devices we own, and the indoor spaces where we spend most of our time, are taking us further and further away from nature. However, Technology has been promising more free time since the 19th century. But people are working more than in the past. Technology should have served us, but we have been serving it. So, are we happier now? Does being so close to other people through technology mean that we are truly becoming closer to them?
In the past, people knew each other and their stories better. Today, we do not know each other's stories. Today's world, which Mcluhan defines as a "universal village", is experiencing instantaneous communication via the internet, allowing information to travel around the world quickly.
However, in the past, information was a whole of facts obtained as a result of learning, research, experimentation or observation. This information was recordable, visible and retrievable. Nowadays (in Postmodern discourse), what is important is no longer the search for more accurate information, but the displacement of the concept of truth itself and the deciphering of its functioning mechanisms. Thus, the aim is to multiply the truths rather than creating new truths.
In this context, my exhibition titled Virtual Landscapes is about the separation of information from its own nature (reality), its reproduction and sharing. While doing this, it uses the concept of tree, which is the oldest and most ancient symbol of knowledge from past to present.
When we look at old myths, the tree dedicated to knowledge and the divine world has been believed to be the model of the universe in many teachings throughout history. The tree, which is the subject of religion with the sin committed by the first man (forbidden tree and apple), symbolizes the connection between the worlds according to esoteric information. For example, it is believed that the tree on which Jesus was crucified was made from the tree of life in heaven and has the feature of resurrecting the dead. In Christianity and Judaism, the staff is sacred because The staff represents the tree of knowledge. Another tree that is believed to be sacred is the Christmas tree. According to the Torah, God created man and the tree of life on the same day.
The tree in heaven, mentioned by Dante in his Divine Comedy, is also depicted upside down. In different cultures, the tree of life represents the universe and the human soul. It is like a map of macrocosm and microcosm. According to Kabbalists, the tree of life is a model of the formation of the universe. The tree of life is also the tree of wisdom.
Trees have a special importance among the beings that humanity attributes holiness such as mountains, stones, trees, fire and water. The tree has always been among the leading sacred symbols. Because it is tied to the ground with its roots and reaches to the sky with its branches. It is permanent. It renews itself countless times by shedding its leaves and greening again every year. It is a symbol of returning to life after death.
Turkish epics were written with epics that sanctify the tree and the forest and derive their power from the respect felt for them. In Turkish systems, leaders who establish a state receive a blessing from God, and this blessing is usually given through a tree. Because the tree is a tool that unites the heavens and the earth and brings humanity to God. The wives of Oğuz Kağan and Bögü Tegin were also born from the trees of life, and the golden stake, which is the symbol of the tree of life, shines on their heads.
In Yakut and Altai Turks, the tree of life is also called the World Tree. According to the ancient Turkish tradition, this is a tree that connects the Earth from its middle (navel) to the beyond-world and the Iron-Stake Star, and provides shamans the opportunity to travel from the earth to the higher realms through its branches. It is single, alone and can stand on its own. It does not need people, people need it.
The documentary titled "In the Footsteps of Genghis Khan" tells the story of a Kalmyk family of four while following in the footsteps of Genghis Khan. In one of the scenes, in a magnificent scene where they hug the trees, kiss them and talk to them, the following is heard:
"Do you hear the trees whispering? They speak to us softly from the tops. But we do not listen to them... We have been passing by them for thousands of years without paying attention. Yet they have seen so much... There is a generous heart under this shell, I love you... You give me the strength to continue."
The Tree of Life, with its roots reaching from underground and its branches from the sky, is believed to lead human beings to the Creator. That is why trees were attributed sanctity but were never worshiped. It was only a sign of integrity between the center of the world and the universal axis. In other words, it is the path to eternity.
In this context, shamans were using the tree as a ladder to reach the sky. They called it the Iron Tree. According to the shamanist tradition, the Earth was in contact with the "navel of the sky" thanks to this tree and was fed by this tree. Just as the umbilical cord is of vital importance for a baby in the womb, this communication channel was equally important for the earth.
This cosmic pillar is the Tree of Life. The creation of man also took place in this center.
In many religions, the manifestation of God on earth is in the form of a tree. People try to be close to trees. They make wishes from them. Communication with God is established through the tree. Buddha, who was born with a mythological birth story, became enlightened by sitting under the tree of wisdom.
In ancient Chinese beliefs, it was believed that every woman had a tree inside her. Children were born from this tree. In some regions of Europe, it is believed that trees give birth to babies. That's why there are baby trees in many parts of Europe.
The tree of life, which is also known as the sacred tree, the state tree, the golden tree, turned into the tree of heaven in the Islamic period. On the other hand, the Ottomans considered the tree a symbol of sovereignty and the seat of the spirits of ancestors.
The Tree of Life also determines people's fate. Osmanlı Türkleri’ne göre ağaçtan her yaprak düştüğünde bir insan ölür. Yaprak düşerken başka bir yaprağa değerse o yaprağın kaderinin bağlı olduğu sağlıklı insanın kulağı çınlar.
Another common practice is to plant a tree for every child born. Ancient world people believed that everything was alive. Trees also had a certain spirit and intelligence. In fact, it is believed that cutting down a living tree will cause them pain, and it is said that some trees cry when they are cut down. In some cultures, sacrifices were made to the tree and an apology was made to it before it was cut down. Burying the dead under trees is also intended to benefit from the same sanctity.
In Sufism, the tree of life is defined as the "tree of the world". Adam is only a fruit of this tree of the world. Mevlana says, "The world is a tree, we are its fruits." Then, Ataturk had a whole building moved on the rails in order not to change the location of a tree, and sometimes he sat and cried for hours over a tree that was cut down. While the Walnut Tree has been the subject of Nazım's poems from past to present, the Plane Tree has entered our lives as an inheritance from Osman Bey. That is why the Tree of Life is the symbol of both the past and the future. The concept of Family Tree was derived from here. While the tree represents the ancestors with its roots, it also the future with its branches. represents generations.
While the tree has sometimes been used as a tool to direct natural events, it has also been seen as a means of communication with God.
The meaning attributed to nature and its most important part, the tree, from past to present, gains a new dimension with technology. There is now a landscape that is engraved in our memories, consisting of imagination and design, that has begun to replace real nature. This landscape does not resemble the paintings of Cezanne, Pissarro, or Modern period painters. This landscape we are in today is a world surrounded by social media networks, inviting us to constantly share. Today, we not only change nature with technology, but also add artificial components to it. I try to use trees and nature in my exhibitions, surrounded by internet networks, as a result of our distance from nature. Beyond that, it emphasizes that we try to build virtual worlds.
“Virtual Landscapes” brings together these two worlds of knowledge (the tree of wisdom in the past) and today's internet (social sharing environment). And perhaps it tries to explain that our world, which has become transparent in every sense of the word, emerges as a “landscape” behind every shared image and text, where we cannot find anything to see or learn.
This view brings with it the danger of turning into an abyss at any moment with the unlimited and instant sharing opportunity that the digital world provides us. In Baudrillard's words, "There is no need to even dream today. Our situation may be like a tree that has lost its shadow. It no longer takes root, we become a tumor..."
Ali Alışır
2014