On the 9th November Germany will be commemoraing the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, and preparations for events including a giant street party to celebrate the landmark event are underway. According to Art Daily, the soundtrack of the party will be delivered to the throngs of people celebrating courtesy of the Berlin State Orchestra, the veteran German rockstar Udo Lindenberg, and the techno DJ Paul Kalkbrenner, A mixture of musical styles that should keep Berliners entertained andcelebrating into the small hours.
As part of these celebrations, the artists Christopher Bauder and Marc Bauder have conceived a poignant piece of public art at the site of the wall’s divide. This is a visual reminder of the German capital’s division. The work is actually a city-wide installation; the artwork stretches across 15km and consists of 8,000 glowing white balloons perched upon 11-foot masts, illuminating the dark history of the divide where many East German’s attempted crossing to the West. The installation precisely retraces the locations where the wall once stood. The work, entitled Lichtgrenze, is designed to illustrate the vastness of the separation.
The mayor of Berlin Klaus Wowereit has recently commented on the events by saying: “25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the once divided city presents itself today as a liberal and open-minded metropolis, we place ourselves in solidarity with those who have raised their voices for freedom, democracy, and human rights back then as well as now, Berlin, after 25 years, has become a place of creativity, openness to the future, and internationality” – According to a press statement.
“We will be thinking of the many courageous and determined people whose persistent protests made possible the happy events of November 9, 1989 and, subsequently, German unity” – Steffen Seibert, a spokesperson for the German government, told Art Daily.
Lichtgrenze will be on view from November 7 – 9.