Artist turns Austrian football stadium into a forest

An estimated 300 trees have been replanted in a 30,000-seat stadium to draw attention to climate change and deforestation

Spotted: Swiss artist Klaus Littmann has temporarily turned an Austrian football stadium into a European forest. The exhibition is the largest public art installation to be held in the country, according to the organisers. 

The installation is called For Forest: The Unending Attraction of Nature, designed by Klaus Littmann. The work, based on the ideal image of a European mixed forest, is an interaction with a drawing by Austrian artist Max Peintner. The work covers 7,000 square meters using 299 specially selected trees. The forest floor was designed by Enzo Enea and his team incorporating various plant species, such as shrubs and woody plants, to authentically create the image of a forest.

The aim of the exhibit is to remind people about the dangers of deforestation and climate change. It was inspired by a painting of a dystopian world where the only place left for trees was a stadium. In the painting, people can be seen visiting the stadium to see the trees just as people would visit animals in a zoo.

The organisers imported approximately 300 trees from Belgium, Germany and Italy. The trees have been used to create a temporary forest in the Wörthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt, Austria.

Access to the temporary forest is free. The exhibit is set to run until 27 October. The trees will be replanted in a nearby plot. This permanent display will include an education centre where people can learn about deforestation.