Hilden XXI
The first mural for the agenda 21,
Hilden, germany, Berliner Straße 4, 150 qm, 1997

organization: Farbfieber   co-operation: Umweltschutz Aktiv Artists: Juan Garcia Milo, Cuba; Klaus Klinger, Düsseldorf; Helfer: Jugendliche von "Umwelt Aktiv" und Liliam Neumann

Hilden XXI

Hilden is a typical German, middle-sized city. Investors, architects, and town planners completely over-planned this city in the sixties and seventies. They created an ugly picture, which seems to be worse than the destruction in World War II.

Hilden, detail

The “Berliner Straße” used to be a small and narrow street. Inspired by some weird fantasies, it now turns out to be a 2 x double lanes, city-to-city freeway. Circles of freeways, further concrete sealing and extensive traffic are serious ecological problems in Hilden.

Detail

The mural ironically deals with these development problems and pleads for an ecological relationship and attitude towards nature, by depicting a huge tropical plant. This picture expresses a start into the next century, taking the social, the ecological and the environmental issues into consideration. Another aim is to build bridges to the exploited countries. The first draft was presented to the public during an exhibition of Cuban art at the community house in Hilden.

Artists and group

The mural is very new for Hilden and created curiosity and scepticism at the same time. During the painting process, schools visited the project and many car drivers watched the making of the mural. Some drivers stopped their cars and had discussions with the artists. Even a crane operator, who used to watch the developments from his workplace above, climbed down to join in one of the painting sessions.

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