The subject of the project is the spirit. The tree is the visual object, the vehicle used for transcendence, implicitly the tree for a short period of time becomes the body hence why also the subject of my project. The average human lifespan is approximately 79 years. This is a short period of time if you take in consideration the age of the earth being approx. 4.6 billion years old, the question being what is for us to learn in this small period of time? My project is concentrating on the final leg of the journey. This idea of ascension, of transcending the physical body and what could be the last image your retina records before the spirit leaves the body. Shamanic tribes from Siberia consider the tree the centre of the universe and a vehicle for transcendence. Humans being in the middle were the trunk emerges from the earth. Access to lower and higher realms only possible trough shamanic rituals or death. Mircea Eliade (1957) lists the following main category of cosmically significant trees from which I will concentrate on two: 1.There is a pattern of stone-tree-altar which constitutes a microcosm of the world in most ancient religions (Australia, China, Indo-China, India, Phoenicia, the Aegean). 2.The tree is an image of the cosmos (India, Mesopotamia). 3.The tree is a site of cosmic theophany (India, Mesopotamia, the Aegean). 4.The tree is a symbol of life, inexhaustible fertility, absolute reality, connected with the symbolism of the water identified as the fount of immortality. 5.The tree is the centre of the world and a supporting prop of the universe (Altaians, Scandinavians). 6.Mystical bonds exist between the tree and humans (it gives birth to people, is a repository of the souls of ancestors, is used in wedding and initiations rites). 7. The tree is a symbol of the resurrection of vegetation, and spring ( as used in May processions). I can feel my chin touching my chest… I see my legs hanging… a branch emerges from my face, the image is blurred and to close to focus… I look in the distance …a final image. The concepts is based on the idea that every inhabited region has a centre, the Axis Mundi in certain beliefs and philosophies is the world centre, or the connection between Heaven and Earth. The aim of this project is to take the viewer on a small journey from birth to identification to the moment of transition/death. In less esoteric terms the journey is a tree climb a natural wooden ladder that takes you closer to a source of heat and light. Five trees from five different species shoot from the maximum canopy hight. Similarly to looking down on yourself you cannot see your face but you see yourself from the shoulders down. When looking down on myself I don’t see me I see Other. In addition to the five large printed images I will also have a 3 minutes looped 360 video shoot up high in the canopy. Virtual reality googles will be used for a more immersive experience with the aim of exploring the sensation of vertigo that I have experienced during the climb. The objective here is to reenact what could be the final image your physiological body is seeing before transcending/death and also give the viewer the opportunity of inhabiting that space for a short while. 5 Trees 5 Ascending bodies 5 Final Retinal Afterimages. Afterimage is a non-specific term that refers to an image continuing to appear in one’s vision after the exposure of the original image has ceased. In this case I am using only the ascending part of the journey having also explored the regression option. The Climb The project is getting informed from direct engagement with the subject, tactile, olfactory, gustatory and visual, the climb enabling all of this elements. The initial research which had to include the climb, gave me more than I expected. Every step I took climbing this ever shrinking ladder has been a continuous reminder of fertility. Step by step taking me closer to the sun the source of light and energy. Each connection of the branch with the tree, the central split, all resemble when looking down, a beautiful androgynous sexual organ. There is no vertigo if I let go and learn how to swing with the tree. A feeling of calm reaches every part of my body the moment I embrace this balanced movement, it is as if back in the cradle next to Mother.