A FOREST IN A FOOTBALL STADIUM
“FOR FOREST – The Unending Attraction of Nature” is a temporary art intervention by Klaus Littmann that will turn the Wörthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt into Austria‘s largest public art installation from 8 September until 27 October 2019. Using 300 trees, some of which weigh up to six tonnes, landscape architect Enzo Enea will cover the entire playing field with a mixed forest characteristic of Central Europe. From the grandstands, visitors can admire the spectacle of the trees day and night (from 10am until 10pm). Admission is free. A sight that is as unfamiliar as it is fascinating and bound to stir up a range of emotions and reactions! Depending on the time of day (or night), the trees will constitute a constantly changing landscape that is shaped by the weather as well as the autumnal turning of the leaves. The installation is a clever play on our emotions when faced with what should be a familiar sight, placed in an entirely different context. With this monumental work of art, Littmann challenges our perception of nature and sharpens our awareness of the future relation between nature and humankind. The project also sees itself as a warning: One day, we might have to admire the remnants of nature in specially assigned spaces, as is already the case with zoo animals.
THE STORY BEHIND FOR FOREST
Klaus Littmann’s Idea: The project was initiated by the artist and international contemporary art mediator Klaus Littmann. Klaus Littmann first saw the pencil drawing “The Unending Attraction of Nature”, by Max Peintner (born 1937), over 30 years ago, and has since held on to the idea of turning this striking dystopia into a reality.
