Lebensbaum / Tree of Life

Born in Croatia, Ivan Kozaric is among the most important artists of the post-war avant-garde in former Yugoslavia; however, he only first gained recognition in Germany through a comprehensive retrospective at the Haus der Kunst in Münich in 2013.
Nonetheless, he had already participated in the 1st Bochumer Bildhauersymposium in 1979/80 and created his Tree of Life out of random found stainless steel scrap. Without altering them, he welded the found objects into a tree that was installed in the middle of a former mining settlement. Reminiscent of a willow tree, the work focuses the relationship between art and nature, from naturally grown to manufactured material, and from industrial production to creativity.
Furthermore, Kozaric has turned out to be a pioneer of today’s recycling art, which aims to demonstrate our wasteful use of limited resources and offer alternatives.