Kalpavriksha: The Tree of Life

Kalpavriksha: The Tree of Life is a site-specific work by Michelle Oosterbaan. Oosterbaan’s works are site-specific. She is fascinated with signs and symbols that visualize change and passage of time. She capitalizes on the physical facts of a location and along with the viewer’s interaction with the space to create a unique “theater of space,” which can be a memory of that experience once the viewer leaves the site.

In this mural, the neighbor’s green and white woven chain link fence influenced the motif of diagonal brush marks. The above and below placement of these diagonal marks symbolize integration. Various widths of full spectrum stripes move from cool to warm to represent the energy, circulation of strength, and diversity of the neighborhood. The warp and weft of woven textile constructions are also suggested with the diagonal rectangular bands.

Color choices in this mural also reflect time passing. The wall faces west and is drenched in warm orange light in the evenings, with the glow of the brilliant setting sun. The diagonal, geometric pattern is repeated in the adjoining green and white fence on the south side of the site. All the colors are hand-mixed.

The mural was created in partnership with the West Rockland Street Project, a citizen-driven effort to revitalize one Philadelphia city block through community organizing and small-scale urban interventions.