Episode 2– Baobab: The Tree of Life
In the heart of the African terrain stands the majestic Baobab, known affectionately as the Tree of Life. This ancient sentinel denotes regeneration, creation, and versatility—a living testament to endurance through the tides of time. Its silhouette, with branches mirroring roots, speaks to the profound duality of existence: as above, so below. It is both grounded and reaching, embracing the earth while yearning for the heavens, symbolising the interconnectedness of all African cultures and those who feel the pulse of the rich continent.
The concept of the Tree of Life is a universal thread woven through the tapestry of human spirituality. From the mysticism of Kabbalah to the teachings of Christianity and Buddhism, and further back to the sacred traditions of ancient African cultures, it represents immortality, strength, and wisdom. The Baobab in its grandeur, becomes a living emblem of these ideals—a bridge between the tangible and the ethereal, the mortal and the divine.
In this painting, the Baobab stands adorned with twelve shoots. Eleven glow with a luminous light, while the twelfth remains unlit—a silent promise of what is yet to come. This deliberate play of light and shadow reflects the infinite cycle of life. From a distance, life appears as an unbroken continuum, but upon closer gaze, it reveals itself as a series of births, voids, and rebirths. The unlit shoot symbolises the threshold of the next octave of existence, echoing the concept of the sefirot in the Tree of Life, where the twelfth emanation is both an ending and a new beginning—the last becoming the first in an endless dance of creation.
Golden accents permeate the canvas, representing not only the richness of our shared connections but also the literal wealth of the African soil. Gold, a mineral synonymous with the continent, becomes a metaphor for the inherent value and abundance found within African unity and heritage. These gilded touches weave through the painting like veins of precious ore, binding elements together with a luminous thread.
The palette of blue hues washes across the scene, invoking the vastness of African skies and the depths of its waters—the realms we refer to as the heavens in our indigenous languages, the subconscious mind. Scattered with golden discs and stars, the sky becomes a celestial tapestry, reminding us of our ancestors' unbroken connection to the cosmos. Each star is a whisper from the past, a guiding light, a fragment of ancestral wisdom shining down upon us.
The Baobab's mirrored form, with roots and branches reaching in opposite yet harmonious directions, encapsulates the balance between life and death, growth and decay. It acknowledges that to understand the Tree of Life is also to recognise the Tree of Death—that they are two sides of the same cosmic coin. This duality teaches that endings are beginnings and that every void holds the seed of new creation.
This painting is more than a depiction of a tree; it is a visual poem celebrating the cyclical nature of existence and the profound connections that bind us to each other and to the universe. It invites the viewer to contemplate the infinite while appreciating the moments—the glowing shoots and the ones yet to shine, the known and the unknown. It is a homage to the resilience and wisdom of the African spirit, a testament to enduring strength rooted deeply in the earth yet stretching endlessly toward the stars.
