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 Forty-six years after the construction of
the Berlin Wall began, a massive collection of art and
authenticated sections of the original wall have arrived in Safety
Harbor.
The Outdoor Arts Foundation has acquired
the world’s largest private collection of Berlin Wall
sections. The collection consists of 350 phase III sections, each
measuring 8'x3'x3"; and, 80 fragmented sections (phase III &
IV), painted by Russian artists Tamara Dubinovskaja, Andre Aksenov
and Vladimir Smatchtin during the reunification of Germany in 1990.
The first truckload, containing all 80 sections painted by the
Russians and about a dozen of the full-size, phase III sections,
arrived July 26.
The Safety Harbor-based foundation, best
known for its building-size murals and projects featuring
artistically designed turtles, manatees and dog houses, has six
separate projects planned for the Berlin Wall collection including
a National Cold War Memorial, 100 Berlin Wall Monuments throughout
North America, a 20th Anniversary exhibit featuring 20 sections
newly painted by Bay Area artists, a 25th Anniversary touring
exhibit featuring 25 sections newly painted by internationally
recognized artists; and, a touring exhibit featuring the pieces
painted by the three Russian artists.
According to Foundation Board President,
Lenné Nicklaus-Ball, “We are extremely fortunate to
have acquired this collection. It will greatly accelerate our
growth and enable the foundation to expand our mission of providing
accessible art exhibits for the masses throughout the
U.S.”
The first project to kick off in Tampa Bay
will be exhibits featuring the Russian sections. A preview
containing half the sections is planned for Wednesday, Sept. 26 at
Reeves Import Motorcars in Tampa. The remaining sections will be
previewed at Syd Entel Galleries from Friday, Oct. 26 through
Sunday, Oct. 28. The Foundation is currently in the process of
organizing additional display venues throughout Florida.
Throughout its existence, the Berlin Wall
served not only as a barrier but also as a blank canvas for the
millions of people who lived beneath its shadow. Most individuals
who remember the Wall, remember it blanketed with graffiti and
works of art created by artists wishing to express their disdain
for the Wall’s existence.
“For ‘Beyond Berlin,’ we
have been lucky enough to acquire unpainted sections of the Wall
from the East German side,” Jay Goulde, executive director of
the Outdoor Arts Foundation said. “These sections were
originally purchased from Dr. Rainer Hildebrandt, the founder of
the Checkpoint Charlie museum.
“Having access to these sections
will afford contemporary artists from around the world the
opportunity to express their feelings about what the fall of the
Wall represented as well as how those values relate to current
events,” Goulde said.
At the onset of Beyond Berlin, the Outdoor
Arts Foundation contacted renowned art historian Dr. Anthony F.
Janson regarding its intentions to have internationally recognized
artists paint sections of the Berlin Wall for use in a project that
would tour throughout North America. After reviewing the project
details and a list of proposed participants, Dr. Janson came to the
conclusion that not only were the artists appropriate for an
endeavor of this scope but also that using the Berlin Wall as an
archival artistic medium would be more than appropriate to
celebrate the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Wall.
Throughout the project, a diverse group of
art historians and 20th Century European History experts will be
asked to comment on the project and write essays regarding their
heartfelt thoughts regarding the fundamental mission of the project
which is to promote the values of freedom, cultural diversity and
the inherent worth of human life, Goulde said.
“A project of this magnitude has
never before been attempted and from the experts that have endorsed
the project to the artists that will make it their own, every step
has been taken to insure that the level of quality and accuracy is
presented by only those with the highest of credentials and respect
within their field,” he said.
The Foundation has already secured
acclaimed artists such as Robert Stackhouse and Carol Mickett,
Richard Anuszkiewicz, Audrey Flack, Mindy Weisel, Michael
Vollbracht, Esther Mahlangu (South Africa) and Dorothy Napangardi
(Australia). Tampa artist and University of South Florida Professor
Emeritus, Theo Wujcik has signed on to curate the project. Over the
next several years, artists will be flown to St. Pete Beach to work
on their sections; and, the foundation will be securing the
remaining artists for the project.
The list of artists that Dr. Janson
approved represents a core group of historically significant
contemporary artists from around the world. Each artist is being
asked to reflect upon the project mission and create an original
work of art to inspire the millions of people that will experience
this unique exhibit.
While each artists’ composition will
be unique, the artistic medium that they are using will be uniform.
In this case, the fact that the artists are using the Berlin Wall
as their medium punctuates the importance of this project and
it’s relevance to modern history.
Earlier this year, the Outdoor Arts
Foundation contracted the scientific research firm CTL Group to
authenticate the Berlin Wall collection. CTL Group acquired a
control sample of phase 3 concrete from the German government and
then compared the control sample with what Outdoor Arts Foundation
acquired. Microscopic analysis determined that the two samples were
similar in chemical composition and that what the Foundation was
acquiring was in fact the Berlin Wall, which was built in four
phases. Construction began in 1961 and it continued as an icon of
the Cold War until Nov. 9, 1989.
In the early summer of 1990, the
governments of the Soviet Union and Germany collaborated to allow
three Russian artists to travel to Berlin to paint fragmented
sections of the Berlin Wall. Artists Dubinovskaja, Aksenov and
Smatchtin painted 112 of these sections, inspired by the
reunification of Germany and subsequent celebrations.
This is the largest private collection of
Berlin Wall sections on the planet and the only known collection of
phase 3 concrete in North America. In 1999, the New York firm of OK
Harris estimated the value of the entire collection at $2.5
million.
When in Berlin, the phase 3 pieces of the
Wall that Outdoor Arts Foundation has acquired were configured in
8' (wide) x 9' (high) sections, each with three 8' (wide) x 3'
(high) pieces stacked on top of each other. Each 8'x9' section
was supported by two “I” beams on each side with each
“I” beam rooted 8' underground.
The Outdoor Arts Foundation will be
facilitating the installation of up to 100 commemorative monuments
throughout North America. Each of these monuments will consist of
two supporting “I” beams with 3 authentic phase 3
sections placed between them. The monuments will look exactly how
the sections looked in their original Berlin location. The
monuments will be accompanied by a granite stone with a brass
plaque, denoting the dates that the Berlin Wall existed. The first
of these monuments is tentatively scheduled to be installed in the
Tampa Bay area by the end of August.
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the
fall of the Wall, The Outdoor Arts Foundation will be organizing a
local exhibition featuring 20, 18"x18" sections, newly painted by
20 Tampa Bay Area artists. The foundation currently is in
negotiations with the Hillsborough County Aviation Authority to
have the sections displayed at Tampa International Airport between
March ’09 and November ’09.
It will take nine 18-wheel trailers to
ship the 430 sections of Berlin Wall from their current location in
Maine to Tampa Bay. Each 3'x8'x 3" concrete slab weighs
approximately 804 pounds. Additional shipments of the remaining
unpainted sections will be arriving over the next several
months.
A limited number of blank and painted
sections are available for purchase. For information regarding
purchasing a piece of the Wall, to schedule an exhibit featuring
the Russian pieces; or, to inquire about other projects involving
the Berlin Wall, visit www.outdoorartsfoundation.com.
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