Der Baum (The tree), 2023, air-refreshener on artificial tree, 450x200x250 cm.

The artwork is a homage to Caspar David Friedrich's painting "The lonely tree "and combines elements of art history, modern product imagery and tropes omnipresent in my ongoing art practice.

The tree in Caspar David Friedrich's painting stands for rootedness, steadiness, resilience, and immortality. The tree unites immanence and transcendence; even though it looks damaged, it remains and serves its purpose.

The oak is a famous symbol in German visual culture. Its roots go back to pre-Christian times, and one has to mention that it was misused in Nazi Germany. The führer was presented as a personification of the tree, and thousands of Hitler-Eichen were planted in the Reich.

Nevertheless, both German states decided to stay by the oak as a symbol after the war. It could be found on the 5 D-Mark banknotes and is still used on the reverse of Eurocents issued in Germany. Finally, Joseph Beuys restituted the oak in 1982 when he planted 7000 trees in Kassel.

The Wunder-Baum was developed in the 50s by Julius Sämann - a German Jew who fled the Nazis to North America. It is the ultimate product of a tree: the cellulose forms the carton, from which the air freshener is made, the etheric oil responsible for the smell is extracted from pines, and the product's shape is borrowed from the evergreen tree. It might look and smell like a tree, but it is only an industrial mass product. One could state that it has been torn with its' roots to hang in a mobile vehicle.

Magic Trees were trendy in Poland in the 90s. They were souvenirs, and status symbols hung inside one's car (preferably Volkswagen Passat) to show that someone was in Germany. But not only there. Little Trees were and are prevalent in Germany. I saw them in most cars while travelling with my parents to Poland on an Autobahn as a child. I kept thinking this was a German product for most of my life. Eventually, after moving to Italy, I discovered it could be branded as Arbre Magique. "What an act of blasphemy!" – I thought, only to figure out a few minutes later that the Wunder-Baum was not as German as it seemed.

Last but not least, the Wunderbaum stands in contrast to the oak. The oak is rooted and steady, whereas the Wunderbaum can be in permanent motion.