If a tree were tasked with drawing a self-portrait, how would it represent itself? How much of its composition and essence that we, as humans, either cannot see or fail to notice would a tree be innately motivated to put forward as their representation-of-Self? Would they draw a singular form or would they draw a network of interconnected, cooperative elements? How much would be above-ground, how much below? Would they understand the assignment, or would they not be able to comprehend the abstract concept of the "singular-self?"...
...imagine if we had never been habituated to the presence of mirrors. Imagine if we had never learned to be self-conscious, to feel shame, insecurity, pride, or vanity, at the sight of our own bodies and reflections...imagine if we'd not been taught to see the world from the perspective of a singular, isolated-self...how might our own self-portraits look then? Maybe they wouldn't be so different from the trees'.
...imagine if we had never been habituated to the presence of mirrors. Imagine if we had never learned to be self-conscious, to feel shame, insecurity, pride, or vanity, at the sight of our own bodies and reflections...imagine if we'd not been taught to see the world from the perspective of a singular, isolated-self...how might our own self-portraits look then? Maybe they wouldn't be so different from the trees'.
