There’s an ‘uprooted’ house suspended above this German square

Construction sites are unconventional spaces for art exhibits, but it is the perfect spot for Leandro Erlich’s “Pulled Up by the Roots” installation in Germany.

Featuring a house suspended from a crane with visible roots dangling from beneath it, the spectacle serves as a reminder of the connection and presence of Earth and nature, even in the midst of manmade chaos.

Karlsruhe, Germany, is hosting the summer festival “A City of Stars,” featuring a variety of sculptures all around the city. “Pulled Up by the Roots” is positioned right above the construction site for a new tram system in the area. Erlich describes the scene as a call to action for citizens to remember “underneath the tons of metal and concrete of our cities, a vital organic presence remains.” He explains further, “The speed of technology and the increasingly virtual dimension in which many of us we live only encourages this tendency to separate our inventions from the earth that sustains us.”

The artist describes the reality of Karlsruhe citizens, who face the ubiquitous presence of cranes and other machinery, disturbed and sectioned-off sidewalks throughout town, and a seemingly endless string of new projects overshadowing the natural beauty of the city. By realizing that human civilization and nature will forever be linked, he argues that then can the harmony behind the commotion be seen. The “Pulled Up by the Roots” installation can be seen until September 27, 2015.