photos: Magali Caillard
This hefty statue is an anti-war protest and a loud, unapologetic celebration of love, which are two things we’re totally into at iHeartBerlin. Better still, there’s more to it than meets the eye – beyond its simple yet enticing form and the significant message, this piece of work will amaze you in more ways than one.
What does the ”Fuck War” statue actually stand for? According to its creators from AKT Jewels, a Geneva-based team consisting of engineers, designers, and craftsmen, it’s supposed to be ”a way to turn war into a laughing stock”. The creators also maintain the piece is inspired by a quote from an iconic figure that incidentally has a special connection with Berlin – Iggy Pop.
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by Michalina | Art
Sometimes Berlin is such a tolerant and peaceful place to live that we tend to forget how fucked up certain things really are. I mean, of course, there are many terrible and dangerous things going on (climate change, terrorism, HIV and so on). But certain things are beyond bad. They are so bad that we can’t even believe that they actually exist and are a real threat to us. I am speaking about nuclear weapons, which became more like an abstract concept in the last 25 years of the end of the cold war (at least on European soil).
But nuclear weapons are absurdly real and in times of Trump and Kim Jong-Un they get even closer to our privileged peaceful lives. This Saturday there is an incredible opportunity to fight them here in Berlin. ICAN – the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons who won the Nobel Peace Prize this year are organizing a Human Chain between the Embassy of North Korea and the US-Embassy. I had a little chat with the Board Member of ICAN Germany, Leo Hoffmann-Axthelm, born and raised in Berlin, about the protest and why we should all show up there.
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by Claudio | People, Stories
A couple of days ago a quite unusual sight came into being at Brandenburger Tor. Three disused busses where erected like poles right by the backside of the gate. What is the meaning of that you might wonder? The installation was made by the artist Manaf Halbouni and it was already on display in Dresden earlier this year. It caused a bit of protests from the right wing, but generally people were quite stunned by it.
But what is the meaning of these mysterious busses? The installation is a reference to a photo that was taken in 2015 in war-ridden Aleppo. It showed busses that were put up just like that as shields against the gunfire. Titled “Monument” the piece is calling for awareness of this horrible war that is still going on today.
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by Frank | Art
Have you ever heard about the rubble women, or Trümmerfrauen in German? They were the bold women and girls who stepped in to reconstruct German cities after the severe destruction wrought by the second world war. Read on to get inspired by their courage and resilience.
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by Michalina | Stories
During the Second World War, not only the Berlin Zoo but also other zoos across Germany such as the Zoologischen Garten in Düsseldorf and the Dresden Zoo were severely bombed and consequently destroyed. Despite years of existence and many promises of evacuation this did not happen and the animals were not spared. Many died due to injuries and mistreatment or due to hunger, poisoning or thirst and some of the few survivors that were left were put to use in an effort to rebuild what was destroyed, such as the elephants at the Hamburg Zoo. Nonetheless, some of the large and potentially dangerous animals such as panthers, jaguars and gorillas who managed to escape the unfolding inferno had to be chased down the streets and shot dead. It was hellish. In the Berlin Zoo only 91 of almost 4000 animals remained alive by the War’s end, including two lions, two hyenas, an Asian bull elephant, a hippo bull, ten hamadryad’s baboons, a chimpanzee, and a black stork. Here are two examples…
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by Guest Author | Stories
We all know about the tumultuous past of Berlin and the many scars it has left on the city. We’ve all seen black and white photographs of the dark and sad history. But rarely have we seen moving pictures in colors of the time after the war when the city was in ruins and the people where shoveling through the debriss. Now a video surfaced that shows Berlin in 1945 after the war – but thanks to video retouching by Konstantin von zur Mühlen the partially unreleased material is in color and high def quality. It’s quite stunning to see Berlin like this and learn a little bit more about its history. Enjoy the film after the jump.
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by Frank | Videos
photo: Pablo Derka
I think nearly nobody from the younger generation of Western Europeans has a concrete idea of what war is all about. It’s quite a different case in Israel where war is a constant threat and alone the three years of compulsory military service have an influence of the young generation’s mindset.
In the fresh new theatre piece of my good friend Santiago Blaum that will premiere this Friday at the Sophiensaele the story revolves around Elik Niv who is an Israeli elite soldier who left his homeland to establish a career as a contemporary dancer in Germany. On the stage he encounters the devil, like in Stravinsky’s L’Histoire du Soldat, and must enter into negotiations with him: reality and fiction, a biography and historical facts melt into one. Like an ego-shooter Elik takes us through video simulations, personal war experiences and beyond borders. Tatiana Saphir, star of our fashion parody Tati the Fruti Salad, is contributing to the piece in the role of a fabulous actress. The dates and more information after the jump.
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by Claudio | Theater
