Nature played an important role in Beuys's art. While his early drawings and paintings depicted nature or used natural elements and pigments, his later work combined his interests in politics and nature. The title of this drawing translates as 'The Plantation' in Italian. It relates to a project the artist began in 1984, on his sixty-third birthday, to plant four hundred trees and bushes in Bolognano. He was made an honorary citizen of the town in the same year. Beuys particularly loved Italy, and his work was exhibited there during his lifetime more than in any other country.