Ecological Commitment

Friedensreich Hundertwasser
ARCHE NOAH 2000 - YOU ARE A GUEST OF NATURE - BEHAVE 
Originalposter, 1981

Friedensreich Hundertwasser ARCHE NOAH 2000 - YOU ARE A GUEST OF NATURE - BEHAVE Originalposter, 1981 © 2018 Namida AG, Glarus

Baum-Pflanzung, Rosenthal-Fabrik in Selb, 1982
Filmstill aus "Hundertwassers Regentag", 1972. Ein Film von Peter Schamoni in Zusammenarbeit mit Friedensreich Hundertwasser (Werknummer 707 in Hundertwassers Werkverzeichnis)
"We are only guests of nature and must behave accordingly. Man is the most dangerous "pest" to ever ravage the earth."
Friedensreich Hundertwasser, Concrete Utopias for the Green City, 1983

Hundertwasser's popularity is based not only on the radiance of his painting and his visionary architecture, but also on his commitment and numerous interventions for an all-encompassing protection of nature and the environment. At the heart of Hundertwasser's ecological actions was the idea of restoring nature to its rightful place through tree planting and greening campaigns (afforestation of roofs, tree tenants), restoring natural cycles (humus toilet), protecting water and fighting for a waste-free society.

Hundertwasser designed original posters for saving the oceans, protecting the rainforest and against nuclear energy, among other things. These posters were printed in large print runs and the sales proceeds were donated to environmental initiatives and environmental organisations. The design of environmental posters was part of his strategy, which manifested itself in a wide range of activities, lectures and campaigns aimed at preserving and protecting the natural environment and activating people's awareness of environmental protection. His participation in the actions to save the Hainburger Au is particularly memorable. He camped for a week in the floodplain, designed the poster Hainburg - The free nature is our freedom and protested against a controversial police operation by tearing up the Austrian State Prize.

Hundertwasser himself realised his ideas of a life in harmony with the laws of nature in his modest retreats in the Waldviertel, Normandy, Venice and in his valley in New Zealand, where he planted more than 100,000 trees, created canals and ponds and built water purification plants. He used solar and water energy and used the humus toilet in all his homes.

"Those who promote nuclear energy are either excessively short-sighted, tendentiously informed or deliberately criminal."

Friedensreich Hundertwasser, On Ecology, 1983