The catalogue for the Basel Schaulager’s inaugural exhibition is the first comprehensive publication covering the full range of the artist’s spheres of work; it offers a complete overview of the work Dieter Roth created between 1945 and 1998. The rhythm of the artist’s life was set by his chosen home in Iceland, resulting in a lifetime spent travelling back and forth between the volcanic island, his homes in Basel, Europe and the USA. These factors also influenced his work, his combination of sensitivity and extravagance, the inherent contradictions of his extroverted nonconformism and the audacity with which he deliberately used perishable materials and playfully explored boundaries. Explanatory texts on the individual groups of works present the selected works in a historical context and shed light on the artist’s intentions.