ABSTRACT
In February 2016, Mark Coreth was commissioned to create a bronze sculpture, The Tree of Hope, by the Order of St John, to be placed in Muristan, the centre of the Old City of Jerusalem. With members of the Jewish, Christian and Islamic faiths, Mark sculpted an olive tree with a canopy of swifts. The sculpture symbolises the city and her people throughout time and offers a message of hope. Encouraged by ornithologist Yossi Leshem since 2002, farmers, scientists and conservationists from Israel, Jordan and The Palestinian Authority have worked together installing nest boxes for barn owls. By controlling agricultural pests, the owls have significantly reduced pesticide use while simultaneously uniting Muslims and Jews through a project that has received international recognition. In partnership with Prof. Leshem, in April 2019, Mark Coreth embarked on an ambitious plan integral to the Tree of Hope project. As Flight2Hope, they flew with the swifts in light aircraft up the Jordan Valley to Jerusalem, the aeroplanes being crewed by members from each of the Abrahamic faiths. Both physically and symbolically, they crossed religious and political borders flying with nature and carving a message of mutual respect in the air above the Holy Land.
