In Mumble of the Homecoming Oak, Nadia Kaabi-Linke draws a parallel between the displacements endured by trees endemic to the Lyon area because of industrial forestry and the loss of loved ones. During several workshops, the area’s residents revealed the skeletons of collected oak leaves. Participants who dedicated their leaves to a deceased person have entrusted their intimate and often painful memories of losses. The inner sounds of their bodies, like heartbeats, blood streams inside their veins, diaphragmatic percussions, etc., were converted into vibrations resonating through the tree’s branches and leaves. In the installation, the tree became a medium for the human spirit as it synchronized the pulse of the skeleton leaves with the participant’s intimate memories carried by their body’s inner voices.
The animation of the oak tree through bodily sounds expressing personal feelings reminds us how much all organic processes, human individuals, animals, plants, and even death transcending commemorations, relate through the metabolism of nature. Treating the various forms that death can take, Kaabi-Linke embraces the tree-of-life symbol, which is familiar to many cultures around the world, bringing nature and trees back into our lives and collective awareness.