Tuğrul Selçuk - “The Tree of Life”

“the tree of life” is a symbolic theme historically used throughout the world. It has been used in religious illustration and has represented a symbol of life according to the beliefs of its makers. From gravestones to ceramic plates, carpets, kilims and other textile products, “the tree of life” has been used on various materials as a decorative motif. It has been a subject explored and researched in many different fields from literature to divinity, medicine to mythical lore.





The linden in Germany, the oak in France, the ash in Northern Europe, the cedar in Lebanon, the beech in Siberia, the date in North Africa, and the “cypress” in Turkey have all been used as a decorative element from daily life.

Foremost among the conceptual forms among these motifs, is the cypress which symbolizes the relationship between air-water-earth. Its branches symbolize the layers of the sky and it reaches out to the sun with its trunk. It presents itself as a mystical and holy object.

The longevity and the evergreenness of the cypress, its Aleph-like thrust into the heavens represents patience and immortality in Sufism. Some interpret the form as the ascension of the soul on its upward journey to God.

The cypress tree only interested me formally at first. But as I learned the various meanings associated with it, I realized that there was a surprising relationship between essence and form.



As I worked on the forms I tried to balance my artistic vision with a craftsman’s patience and focus on working with traditional materials and techniques. I tried to bring new visual interpretations by bringing the tree of life together with the symbols of the spiritual world of the past.

I tried to include the more shallow and two-dimensinal quality of our contemporary lives by using certain symbolic forms and colors. I hope that the viewers will feel close to the materials and make the tree of life their own.