Fotoeins Fotografie

Above/featured: next to the Staatstheater at Friedrichsplatz.

As an example of what he called “social sculpture”, German artist Joseph Beuys presented his “7000. Eichen” (7000 oak trees) project at the contemporary art exhibition “documenta 7” in Kassel in 1982. He declared “Stadtverwaldung statt Stadtverwaltung,” which is a play on German words and translates to “urban forestation, instead of urban administration.” He wanted to plant throughout the city 7000 new oak trees, each accompanied by a small pillar of basalt rock. With the trees representing the world and stones symbolizing civilization, Beuys expressed the idea that society could only exist or thrive by living in harmony with the natural world. The project initially encountered skepticism and hostility among the city’s citizens. But all 7000 were eventually planted and installed, effectively turning the entire city into a work of sculptural art and charging the city’s populace with the collective responsibility as the art’s caretakers.

Various exhibitions throughout Germany are marking Beuys’ 100th birthday (12 May) throughout the 2021 year.

Beuys’ artistic and historical legacy: 26-minutes in English, DW Arts.21, 8 May 2021.

(“Onkel Beuys befiehlt Ihnen!”) Information display at Friedrichsplatz with, perhaps, an homage to the American WW2 poster “Uncle Sam wants you!”

I made the two photos above on 1 and 3 Oct 2017 with a Canon EOS6D mark1. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotografie at fotoeins DOT com as https://wp.me/p1BIdT-kGi.