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Hannover - Santiago de Cuba
"The Big Step"
The Big Step In Limmer, a municipal district in Hannover, the facade of a World War II bunker has been redesigned as a mural by Agenda 21. Because of the different surface structures of the wall, the individual elements of the mural were painted on weather-permanent sheets of wood paneling, then sawed out and attached directly to the wall. The bunker is located on a big place in the center of the district. Every day many tram passengers, waiting for the next wagon to approach, use the waiting time to admire the mural directly opposite the tram stop.
The two artists used drawings from up to 600 children and teenagers of the district as the basis for their rough draft. The cloud on the left side, parts of the town, the flowers and figures as well as the idea of the airship on the right side are motives coming directly from the drawings of the children. The artists completed the mural with the central figures of the sun, the migrant on the left side and the creation of the entrance below. The participation went one step further; as the picture continued to grow on the wall, groups of teenagers and adult passers-by commented on their wishes and goals for 'living together in the next millenium', in Arabic, English, German, Turkish, Spanish, etc. the rays of sunlight in the future world of the mural are bearers of these remarks.
The center of the painting is the Earth, which ties together all other pictorial elements. The reality is represented on the left-hand side: faith in technology, escape and expulsion, urbanization, nuclear industry, environmental destruction (the bird), traffic chaos, fear of the future (the hole with hands), and above all, the Euro sun as symbol of money and profit orientation. On the right side the peaceful future Agenda-world is seen: blossoming flowers, clean rain, lakes and rivers, playful children, and the search for knowledge. In the very middle can be seen three suns and a large striding figure. The step of this central female figure over the wall is the true, essential, individual and social action, the international overstepping of the barrier into the new world. José Seoane, called 'Chino', lives and works as an artist in Santiago and has participated in several solo and group art exhibitions in Cuba and the Dominican Republic. In his home neighborhood Chino has initiated many cultural projects with children and teenagers.
Karsten Meier lives and works as an artist and graphic designer in Braunschweig and is a member of the artistsë group KOPRA. This group dedicates itself above all else to the realization of murals. Since the group was founded, more than 50 murals and large-scale paintings have been completed in Cuba, Germany and Italy. In addition to purely artistic projects, KOPRA identifies itself by allowing the incorporation and participation of children, teenagers and members of the adult public into its work. Supporters:Sponsorship: 'Bingo-Lottery' for Environment and Development Niedersachsen, Ministry of Justice and European affairs, Section development politics Foundation 'Leben und Umwelt' (life and environment) Multi Project Fonds of the EU ABP (= Commission of political development education and journalism)
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