Trees as Militarized Bodies

Interview 32: Wounded Lindens along the Miljacka

"Trees exposed to open fire were spared as they were too dangerous to be logged. As a consequence of the shelling, they still bear traces from shrapnel and bullets. If a tree is wounded physically by the shelling it creates scar tissues around the wound or even around the piece inside it, similar to scar tissue that forms knobs and bulges. In protected places some trees were planted, presumably fruit trees for food, as well as fast-growing conifers for firewood."

From an interview with Sead Vojnikovic

Location: Vilsonovo šetalište, Sarajevo 71000.

The Heroes of Treca Gimnazijy: A war school in Sarajevo, 1992-1995:

"Carrying all these nice memories from my school days in Treca Gimnazija, memories of endless laughs and the fun we had - playing soccer in the backyard, holding hands and strolling down Wilson Promenade with my high school sweetheart, I was deeply saddened and horrified when I first saw on CNN the mortar round hit the bench on Wilson Promenade where I had stolen my first kisses, windows of the chemistry lab smashing in the blast, walls of my classroom pierced with bullets.

While my generation of Treca Gimnazija students was stealing kisses and exchanging laughs on their way to and from school, the 1992-1995 generation was dodging snipers and hiding themselves from the firefights on the frontline that cut through the city, right in front of the school building."

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Trees as Resource

Interview 24: Circle of Blue Spruce "We're standing inside the room made by five variants on coniferous pine trees. These are all young because they are hidden behind a large building. So, you have the triangle [of concealment to the] north of the building, and beyond this triangle's [area] are larger trees. The inside here is barren and the floor is made of pine needles. I wonder if people hang out here. I see a pigeon bone." Within Park Mirze i Davora there is one triangularly shaped area that would have been shielded from sniper view by neighbouring buildings. Today, most of the trees in this park are between 150-200 years old and were likely planted during Austro-Hungarian Times. However, there is one exception to that assessment: the five spruce trees within the triangle of protection. In the place of trees cut for firewood, these five spruce were planted in their stead during the war. See the article excerpt below. The Location: Park Mirz...

Trees as Resource

Interview 26: Young Linden Along Terezija "Tree 26 is part of a group of young lindens that have been planted on the street where the Dom Mladih mall is situated [and which runs parallel to the Miljacka]. It is quite out in the open, so we were doubting why there [are] young trees here. And we think the answer is that there were containers placed here in the war and that gave [the citizens] enough shelter to cut down the [existing] trees for wood. To be investigated." Location: Terezija, Sarajevo 71000. Cropped image: FAMA, Survival Map, 1992-96.

Trees as Resource

Interview 12: Young Birch in an Overgrown, Private Garden "A young birch tree sits with another birch trees and many other trees, some ivy, some weeds, and a very angry crow who is maybe territorial and doesn't like that we are here. These are all quite young, in an overgrown garden. It's pretty typical for Sarajevo: one big Robinia [also known as black locust], a lot of elder trees, and a kitten, a walnut tree, and another cat." As a young tree in a private garden, it is likely that during the war trees were felled here for firewood. Location: Pruščakova, Sarajevo 71000. Sarajevo: City Under Siege (1994) BBC documentary: ~22:59 women cut down birch tree, “Leave my birch alone!” “It’s too late. We’ve already cut it.”

Trees in Sarajevo

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