Rinsing the tree and me with water. Water as the base of all live and water as “baptising tool” to “pay extra respect” before starting forcing “my human idea’s” on this tree. Spraying water on objects, humans or animals is also a very strong ritual performed by humans in a lot of cultures.
By using the sarcastic title “Tree hugger” I am defying those who consider me a tree hugger in real live, but in a nice, soft way, hoping to provoke a reaction I could then react to in return in a surprising and alternative (tender) way. Since 2003 I’m working as an artist with trees (Berlin), addressing environmental issues and this led to me being referred to, once in a while, as a tree hugger.
In Malawi I was, called a tree hugger to my face by my Missionary neighbour when I was addressing why his church is so aggressively against gays while not addressing deforestation (and other human devastating behaviours to nature, flora and fauna), which I consider a more important threat. All this inspired me to develop and execute this performance.