PLANT TREES YOURSELF

Stefan Strumbel at Rehmann Museum
Plant trees yourself

“SCHIMELRYCH BIS CHROTTEHALDE. KUNST UND NATUR IN LAUFENBURG” with works by Agnes Barmettler, Dora Freiermuth, Isabelle Krieg und Marianne Engel, Landra (Sara Rodrigues und Rodrigo B. Camacho), Ursula Rutishauser, Lorenz Olivier Schmid, Stefan Strumbel, Riikka Tauriainen, Jan van Oordt and Hannah Weinberger

23.03. – 27.09.27

Stefan Strumbel is giving 50 young fir trees (silver firs, coastal firs and Nordmann firs) a stage at the Rehmann Museum as part of the plant trees yourself campaign. He and local cross-border commuters drove them across the border from two tree nurseries in the southern Black Forest. To this end, he realised the banner Plant the trees yourself, which hangs at the installation. The fir trees in tubs are available at no cost – but only once they are back in Germany (for customs reasons). The poster “Greetings from the Black Forest” with a text by Raffael Dörig is also available to take away. The banner is placed on the tour, but officially the planting of these fir trees in the forest is prohibited. This has to do with the fact that silver firs, for example, do not survive longer periods of heat and thus weaken the forests. For it is the forests that make an important contribution to the defence against global warming. But it also needs all of us: can we simply implement this simple invitation to “plant trees ourselves” and thus make our own contribution? Stefan Strumbel sees the project as a social sculpture, a work of art that only becomes complete through participation.

Stefan Strumbel (*1979) has been working as a freelance artist since 2001 and lives in Offenburg. Since the beginning of his artistic career, his work has focussed on the theme of “home”. In graphics, objects, sculptures and expansive installations, he examines the concept of home and transforms folkloristic imagery into art. In 2022/2023 Stefan Strumbel showed the solo exhibition Gruß aus dem Schwarzwald at Galerie Ruttkowski;68 in Düsseldorf.