East Side Gallery

East Side Gallery

The History Of The East Side Gallery. Did you know that the East Side Gallery in Berlin stands as an international memorial signifying freedom?

The art gallery encompasses a 1.3 km portion of the wall of Berlin located close to the center of the city at Mühlenstraße, Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg. It is located in the hinterland Mauer, which closes the border through West Berlin.

History and Description of the gallery

The East Side Gallery in Berlin may be a fresh addition to the current slew of Berlin attractions. It's 1. 3 km length makes it a sizeable open-air gallery, and one of the longest in the world. The Gallery represents a celebration of freedom after many years of oppression and segregation. It is one of the city's most authentic landmarks.

The Gallery consists of more than 105 paintings made by artists from around the world and painted on the east side of the Berlin Wall in 1990. The Gallery was founded after the successful merging of the two of Germany's artist associations BBK and VBK. The founding members of the Gallery include Artists Bodo Sperling, Jörg Kubitzki, Barbara Greul Aschanta, and more. These paintings express the euphoria and hopes for a better, free future for the people of the world. They document a time of change.

In order to make a way through the River Spree from the O2 World in July 2006, a 40-meter section of the Gallery was moved west, parallel to its original position.

East Side Gallery of Berlin

Later on, a 23-meter portion was scheduled for removal on March 1, 2013, so as to make space for luxury apartments. The artists whose work were to be destroyed weren't informed of the plans. The actual demolition work started, March 1, 2013. The media reported that authorities weren't aware of this. Because there were many protesters, demolition was eventually postponed until March 18, 2013.

Renovation Process of the East Side Gallery

Two-thirds of all paintings in the East Side Gallery were severely damaged due to erosion, graffiti, and vandalism. A third of these paintings have been brought to their original look by a non-profit company which started its work in 2000. The organization's objective was the restoration and preservation of the paintings in the Gallery. The full restoration, especially in the central sections, was slated for 2008. Actual remediation started in May 2009.

The Gallery's restoration process has suffered major conflicts over the years. Eight of the original artists from 1990 refused to re-paint their images after the paintings were destroyed by the renovation. To defend their copyright, these artists founded the Founder Initiative East Side.

One of the original artists Bodo Sperling, in May 2011, opened a test case at the Berlin State Court. The Court will have to address whether an artwork can be listed as destroyed then re-copied without an artists' permission. The trial's outcome will be a landmark decree for European art law.

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Gallery informations

East Side Gallery
Mühlenstraße
10243 - Berlin, Germany
49 172 3918726
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