At a busy intersection in Hamburg's Ottensen district, the 1-story kiosk is located between old buildings and red brick buildings. The colors and shapes of the mural were oriented to the built environment and serve as a unifying element.
The small detached building is surrounded by 4-5 story apartment buildings. Characteristic for this place are the Gründerzeit buildings, which were built in the beginning of the 20th century and are under monument protection. According to the Map of Architecture website, they were built between 1901 and 1909. On the other hand, there are red brick buildings from the post-war period.
An architectural peculiarity of the kiosk building is its pie-shaped form with a round back wall.
CURATION BY QVARTR GALLERY
When I was asked by Qvartr Gallery for the kiosk design, I did not have to think long. It was quickly clear on what terms the painting would take place. Since the whole thing should be ready before an exhibition in the gallery, just 4 weeks passed between the acceptance and the finished mural. The painting took place in December, which meant that due to the early darkness, the painting had to be divided over several days. Since the wall painting should change every now and then, it is also clear that my pictures are not for eternity.
So it was also the case with me that I had to paint over another piece.
Before the design was taken over by Qvartr Gallery, the walls were also already painted. However, since these were illegally applied tags and lettering, the acceptance by the residents was not particularly high.
GRAFFITI FORMS THE ROOT OF MY ART
So I heard when painting very often that the passing people are happy that there is no longer so "rumgeschmiere". To be honest, I can not quite share this joy. Since exactly this "rumgeschmiere" (and large colorful letters) for me and many other artists represent the roots of artistic work. Without these, perhaps for some eyes not quite aesthetic writings, there would be what we call "urban art" today, not at all. In my view, it must also be noted that the more pleasing "urban art" pieces in the cityscape, also have their share in the revaluation of a residential area. Which then contributes a part to the gentrification.
EXHIBITION AND BOOK RECOMMENDATION
How graffiti has spread in Hamburg can be experienced in the book „Eine Stadt wird Bunt“. The accompanying exhibition will be on display at the Museum of Hamburg History until July 31, 2023.
COLOR DESIGN
Before I made a sketch, I looked at the surrounding buildings. A great variety of colors can be discovered in the facades of the Gründerzeit buildings. In addition to pink and violet tones, bluish colors can also be found. In addition, there are various shades of gray and of course the orange-brown of the brick facades.
I record the colors with a RAL color fan and then select the appropriate colors from a color palette.
SHAPE ANALYSIS OF THE SURROUNDINGS
Similar to the colors, it behaves also with the forms. In the first step I measure the area to be painted and transfer it into a CAD program. This way, the rough proportions become tangible quite quickly. The first sketches are made from quick hand drawings, in which I abstract the built environment. Then the abstracted forms are transferred into the CAD - drawing and assembled to a complete picture.
In the abstraction of the facade forms, played in the mural at the kiosk, especially the window divisions and the ornaments of the Gründerzeit buildings a role. From a brick building, the broad elements of the balcony parapet were abstracted.
With this input, the drawing is created on the computer and transferred directly from the laptop to the wall. Of course, there are always situations that require a special reaction. Thus it comes quite also to spontaneous adjustments, which have influence on the picture.
CONCEPT
Through such location analyses a very deep examination of the place takes place. One part of the concept is to integrate the kiosk, which appears as a foreign body, better into its surroundings through artistic intervention. In doing so, I already let it be clearly seen through the geometrically abstract forms that something new has been added here. In this way, I want to give the existing building an appreciation and generally encourage that instead of a demolition and new construction, more with the possibilities of existing buildings is addressed.
Since the building is visible from all sides, I have chosen a connecting motif with the stripes, which takes up and emphasizes the flow of movement around the building. Last but not least, this also refers to the rounded back wall of the building.
If you want to visit the kiosk, you can find it at Friedensallee 88, 22763 Hamburg.
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