Dezeen Magazine

Black Tree by Miloš Milivojevic

Serbian designer Miloš Milivojevic has installed a tree-like mobile phone charger powered by the sun in a park in Belgrade.

Black Tree by Miloš Milivojevic

Black Tree was created by Miloš Milivojevic for renewable energy company Strawberry Energy.

Black Tree by Miloš Milivojevic

Situated in Tašmajdan Park near St. Mark's Church, the tree-shaped structure provides solar-powered energy so that passers-by can recharge their mobile phones and tablets while sitting on the bench underneath.

Black Tree by Miloš Milivojevic

Charging points on stretchy cords hang from the metal bar on the bench.

Black Tree by Miloš Milivojevic

Other projects in Belgrade we've featured on Dezeen include and a concept shop inspired by the "golden years of communism" and a beauty salon with long plastic threads like hair hanging from its ceiling.

See all our stories from Belgrade » 
See all our stories about solar panels »

Here's more information from the designer:


Black Tree for Strawberry Energy

Black Tree is a public solar charger for mobile phones, designed for Strawberry Energy, the company which invented the first public solar charger for mobile phones – the Strawberry Tree. In cooperation with Palilula Municipality and the city of Belgrade, this Strawberry Tree with completely new design has been set up in Tašmajdan park in Belgrade in November 2012.

Black Tree is conceived as an artificial tree which transforms the solar energy into the necessary electrical energy and in this way joins the surrounding forest in a common struggle for the planet richer in oxygen. With its function, this Strawberry Tree reminds us of the insufficiently exploited potential of the energy of the sun, through people’s everyday habits such as sitting under the tree and using the nature as a shelter from the sun. The large but elegant steel construction is more than three and a half metres long and four and half metres tall which follows the line of a real tree.

This public solar charger for mobile devices enables visitors of Tašmajdan park to recharge the batteries of their mobile phones, tablets and multimedia devices with the energy of sun.