THE EAST SIDE GALLERY THE BATTLE TO PROTECT THE WALL FROM INCESSANT VANDALISM
farewell to tacheles BERLIN SAYS GOODBYE TO THE INFLUENTIAL PUBLIC ART MECCA
CATCHING UP WITH 1010 STREET ARTIST 1010 INTRODUCES HIS NEW WORK FOR “LIMBUS”
ALSO INSIDE THE OFFICIAL ALTERNATIVE ART TOUR OF BERLIN BERLIN BAG CHECK: TOOLS OF THE TRADE MAKE YOUR OWN PASTE-UPS CASSIEOPEIA: BERLIN’S COOLEST GRAFFITI CLUB
$7.99 US
5
EDITORS LETTER THE BERLIN EDITION APRIL 2018
CONTENT
DEPARTMENTS An opener from our Editor-in-Chief about the edition and the awesome articles inside.
BLACK BOOK Artist Van Ray explains his love for graffiti blackbooks and how they bring together the graffiti community.
CREW CHECK Check out the graffiti crew every one in Berlin has been raving about: 1UP.
TAG TOUR We take an alternative tour around Berlin to uncover the best locations for badass street art.
BOMB BABES Get to know up-and-coming artist Darkam and the stories behind her dark, expressive murals.
SELF SERVICE 10 easy steps to creating your own wheat paste posters!
RUSTO REPORT We check out the best places in Berlin to score all your essential tagging needs.
7
10 12
18 24 33
TOOLBOX Take a look at artist Mymo’s personal arsenal for tagging inspiration.
DOPE DESTINATION
68 78
We visit the coolest club in Berlin, Cassiopeia, for a night of great music, good drinks, cool graffiti and skateboarding.
38 A look into the daily struggle to keep the East Side Gallery free of unwanted graffiti in order to maintain the integrity of the memorial. We highlight the paradox of keeping the wall intact while allowing freedom for tourists.
WHEN EAST MET WEST
46 A look into the history of the Fall of the Wall, and how this event changed Berlin’s art scene forever.
EXPLORING TACHELES
FEATURES
saving the wall
50 Paying homage to the late artist squat, where thousands of Berlin street artists began their journey.
MITTE’S HIDDEN GEM Cover Photo: Andrijan Möcker
56
AN INTERVIEW WITH 1010
62
Mitte’s Rozenthal Strasse transports visitors into a corridor of colorful collages. We meet with 1010 to chat about his past, his new work, and his plans for the future.
APRIL 2018
EDITOR IN CHIEF deanna black
art director elaine cunfer
assistant editors dj rossino brooke snyder
photographers andrijan mรถcker MICHAEL OXENDINE jenni mindock
writers kareem carter maria johnson
contributors kevin verani katy gilbert miranda pokras kate desiderio ciara sweeney luda ronky julianne marvel kelsey kromer CHRIS KERR CARLOS FRANQUI
contact DEFACE MAGAZINE 14 S SOUTH STREET PHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 WWW.DEFACE-MAG.COM
As a city once marred with incredible hatred and violence, Berlin has risen from the ashes to become one of the world’s most influential cities for public art. Countless years of war have turned the city into a political and cultural melting pot of creative individuals desperately looking for an outlet. This explosion of creativity in the
We begin this journey with a few
We then sit down for an exclu-
streets of post-WWII Berlin made
notable German street artists and
sive interview with artist 1010.
way for several political move-
their personal additions to Berlin’s
He opens up about his past, and
ments and a new culture rooted
public art scene. We then tour the
discusses his plans for future
in acceptance and expression.
city to bring focus on some of the
installations in the city.
After the Fall of the Wall,
most unique pieces of street art.
To wrap things up, we examine
Photo by Deanna Black
the streets became the canvas
Our features in this issue focus
what tools graffiti artists in Berlin
for color-hungry souls weary of
first on the East Side Gallery,
use to make their mark on the city
communism and war. Anti-war
where rampant vandalism has
streets. We also check out the alter-
propaganda and inspiring images
clouded the message behind this
native club, Cassieopeia, a perfect
colored industrial factories where
piece of peaceful propaganda.
spot for city dwellers with a love of
artillery was once made. Abandoned buildings became centers for creatives to meet and share ideas for reclaiming their city.
graffiti, skateboarding and music.
To continue our exploration, we visit the late Kunsthaus Tacheles,
We hope you enjoy reading this
a giant abandoned building that
special edition of DEFACE.
was overtaken by artists after the
In this issue of DEFACE, we explore
Reunification of Germany.
this truly unique city and its
We focus on the hunger of the
colorful nooks and crannies to find
public to color their damaged city
the true meaning of expression.
and regain creative independence from an era of war.
Deanna Black Editor In Chief
DEFACE: BERLIN
5
APRIL 2018
“ SOME PEOPLE BECOME COPS BECAUSE
THEY WANT TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE. SOME PEOPLE BECOME VANDALS BECAUSE THEY WANT TO MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER LOOKING PLACE.” — BANKSY, WALL AND PIECE
TIME CAPSULE
You often hear people say that bombing is the root of graffiti. Others say that tagging is the root of graffiti. Others say painting trains is and always will be the heart of graffiti, and others will say that it ain’t graffiti unless it’s illegal.
In time, a graffiti artists’ blackbooks become miniature time capsules capturing the years of blood, sweat, and tears. They capture the trial and error, improvements, failures, and often become a source of inspiration for an artist looking back at where they’ve come from.
SHAPES AND SIZES When it comes to investing in a sketch book, you should weigh your options, depending on what you’re using it for. By far the most common blackbooks for graffiti artists are the basic
People from all walks of life, from all races and economic upbringings— Men, women, teenagers, black, white, brown, yellow, from New York or Copenhagen… graffiti artists share an interest for lettering. When a graffiti writer is first starting out, they tag. Shortly after this pastime becomes a hobby and one of the first things a writer will pick up is—you guessed it: a blackbook.
Van Pepsi” Top: “ ural M i t ffi Ray Gra n Ray Va | Left: in g hard ln, workin in Kö io d u his st ht : ny | Rig ch Germa et k s a f o I ma ge ’s y a R an from V kbook c la b own
GRAFFITI BLACKBOOKS Graffiti blackbooks are a natural fit for a graffiti artist. They offer a place to practice; safe from police, safe from public, safe from other writers, and safe from your parents. Blackbooks are where a graffiti writer hones his or her skills. As the artist grows up, practices, and improves, they go through many blackbooks. They are swapped and shared between writers and crews to show who they’ve been in contact with and who’s visited where.
D EFACE: BERLI N
One of the benefits to this type of blackbook is that you can sketch double-page spreads pretty easily without having to maneuver between the rings of a ring-bound sketchbook. A spiral bound blackbook is recommended so you can fold the cover back on itself. ...continued on page 8
““
RT OF A E H E H T TO ME,
E H T S I I T I F F A R G
COMMUNITY 7
A PRI L 2 01 8
“
Photos provided by Van Ray
At first it might sound a little crazy but the more I thought about it, the realer the statement gets. To me, the heart of graffiti is community.
21.6cm x 28cm portrait style sketchbook with a hard-cover, bound with a hard-covered spine.
THE OFFICIAL UNDERGROUND TOUR OF SOME OF THE MOST Despite having a little less wall-space to work with, Berlin’s street art scene has totally exploded in the last few years. With the official title “City of Design,” Berlin is covered in graffiti. You’ll literally see some awesome mural or tagged VW van on nearly every corner, and the subculture’s spawned everything from Berlin-based magazines and alternative art tours to a Twitter account that posts photos of the city’s latest tags. Freaking awesome right? Here’s some of the coolest stuff to check out.
KREUZBERG’S COSMONAUT In 2003, old-school French artist Victor Ash tagged this massive spaceman, one of the largest stencils in the world, near Kreuzberg’s Skalitzer Strasse. It’s now one of the city’s most recognizable images, visible from several blocks away.
LINDA’S EX Street artist graphic designer Roland Brueckner started tagging pictures all over the place in 2002, getting all emotional over his breakup with a gal named Linda. Some had the guy crying, some had him angry and some Berliners really got into the story.
BLU SURREAL IMAGES Italian artist BLU lives in Bologna, but has works all over the city, in the shape of odd, futuristic-like cartoons, and often-scary-looking figures. The most well-known is this giant, building-tall man, who’s actually made up of a lot of smaller, naked, pink humans.
D EFACE: BERLI N
5 miles
JR In 2013, French artist JR brought his iconic works to Berlin with the “Wrinkles of the City” project, pasting 15 massive black-and-white portraits of older Berliners onto buildings throughout the city.
12 A PRI L 2 01 8
ICONIC PIECES OF STREET ART IN DOWNTOWN BERLIN
By Kevin Verani
EL BOCHO
WHERE TO
GO
Although this artist does a variety of street pieces and professional exhibitions, he’s most well known for his character Little Lucy who has a bit of a sadistic streak when it comes to her cat. You can find the animal drowning, bleeding, and generally being tortured in corners of Berlin.
ROBI THE DOG Using a combination of styles & techniques, this Swiss artist creates colorful multi-layered paste-ups. His images tend to be slightly absurd, like a Wonderland-esque man-ape with a gun, or this casually cool, lounging zebra.
HERR-VON-BIAS This guy started writing in the ‘90s and has since graduated to illustrations and characters, many of which look they should be in some drug-fueled, pastel version of Real Monsters. He’s part of a Berlin-based artist collection called “The Weird.”
VHILS
OS GEMEOS These Brazilian twins, known mainly for their cartoon-like figures which often splatter across the sides of skyscrapers, graced Berlin with a five-storyhigh yellow man on Kreuzberg’s Oppelner Strasse. D EFACE: BERLI N
Using materials like wheat paste & explosives, artist Alexandre Farto aka Vhils, creates textured and multi-layered pieces on walls and billboards all over the globe. He hit Berlin in 2011 and left four pieces behind. D
13 A PRI L 2 01 8
Photos by Andrijan Möcker
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BERLIN INSTALLS A SECURITY FENCE TO PROTECT THE EAST SIDE GALLERY FROM RAMPANT VANDALISM
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Photo provided by The Berlin Wall Museum
He stopped in front of one of the scores of colorful paintings that make up the 1.3km long facade, and bent down to sign his name on the wall in pencil, watched by his wife, Abeer, who recorded the action on her camera.
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?
Photos by Andrijan Möcker
The result of constant tagging on the gallery murals. The original image is clearly defaced, leaving the meaning behind the artwork a forgotten memory.
Gallery employee, Matthias Berger, repaints one of the tarnished murals. Paint matching is an important skill of bringing these pieces back to their original glory.
Authorities in Berlin said on Thursday
The East Side Gallery, an officially
that such acts were now so common-
listed national monument, was
place, they were planning to construct
turned into an open-air gallery in
a fence in front of the wall, saying that
an impromptu demonstration by 120
if they did not move to protect the
artists from around the world. It is
structure, it would not survive to
not only a memorial to world peace,
the end of the decade.
but also the best place for visitors to
“People come and pick and scratch at it with everything from keys to penknives, hoping to take a piece home
Berlin to gain any substantial impression of the barrier that divided the east and west of the city for 28 years.
with them,” said Sascha Langenbach,
While most of the 96-mile structure
spokesman for the Berlin district
was torn down and sent to various
of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, where
museums around the world, the East
the gallery is located.
Side Gallery was one of the few
“Last week we caught a teenage
Japanese girl in the act of spraying a complete panel in silver and red paint. She had brought a whole crate
TOURISM of spray paint with her,” he said.
sections allowed to remain standing. It is among the most popular attractions in Berlin, drawing an estimated 3 million tourists a year, and is said to be the most popular location in the city for selfies.
The repainted section of this famous mural by Birgit Kinder is restored to its former state. However, due to vandalism, it will need to be repainted within 2 months.
However, authorities say that despite a $2 million project to renovate
the murals in 2009, they have
constantly struggled to protect them
from scribblers and souvenir hunters,
who are known as “woodpeckers.’
“It is a sisyphean task to keep the wall clean,” said Adalbert Maria Klees, the district’s chief technician,
whose job it is to remove the graffiti.
Standing in front of one of the most famous murals — A painting of an
East German Trabant car appearing to burst through the wall by Birgit
Kinder — as it is rubbed in a pungent
brown graffiti remover by a worker,
he said: “This looked even worse this
Bdo na eos beatu vel
morning. Full of ‘I love yous’ and
‘I was heres’ in every language
under the sun.” ...continued on page 64
OR VANDALISM?
Photos by Anrdijan Mรถcker
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s Q 10 FOR
1010
e Photos by Michael Oxendin
In anticipa tion of his debut US so us, art dire lo show wit ctor Elaine h Cunfer rece down with ntly sat German st reet artist more abou 1010 to lea t him, his h rn istory, and his work.
1. Tell us a little about yourself, where are you based and what kind of art do you make?
Originally I am from Poland. My Parents moved to Hamburg, Germany when I was around 8 years old. I am based here since. I paint walls and make papercuts. For the last years I’ve been mostly focusing on an abstract concept.
2. Your work brings many new layers of depth to a flat surface, can you tell us some more about how you achieve this effect? What do you call these peculiar “portals?” In this case painting a shadow does the trick. I call them holes, abyss, passages or portals. Names that leave enough space for interpretation and projection for the viewer.
3. Where did the name 1010 come from? The name was given to me by a Hamburg based photographer when I first started making pasteups around 10 years ago. I was working with minimal characters made out of old newspapers that I pasted around the city. I wasn´t really working with a name or a tag in that time. The only thing I did was marking the characters with a 1 or a 0, just to make a connection between their behavior, the letters and words that were used in the newspaper and binary code. TXMX, thats how the photographer calls himself on the web, found a lot of the characters in the street, took pictures of them and tagged them with 1010 on Flickr. I kind of liked the idea just using numbers as a name and kept it.
4. In addition to your large mu-
rals, you’ve been creating smaller works as well. Is there a size you are most comfortable with? Does this shift in scale change the way you approach certain works? The main reason for the size of my smaller works is the material. I use colored paper and this only comes in a certain size. Inside my studio I like to work with less poisonous and stinky materials.
5. What’s the most interesting place you’ve ever created work in?
Clockwise from left: 1010 stands in front of his new mural on Gitschiner Strasse. The process of painting the large piece on the apartment complex. The finished piece coloring the Kreuzberg neighborhood.
There were a lot of interesting places really. Its easier to tell you about the most interesting project: I recently went to Panama for vacation and met up with a local artist Cisco Merel. I got his contact from Nelio, a French friend and urban artist. Coming from the urban art scene makes it really easy to connect with local artists in most of the countries. I love that! ...continued on next page
BERLIN BAG CHECK the trade. Let’s take a minute to highlight the art of graffiti and the tools of with a rattling bridge a under down ring Nothing compares to the thrill of clambe just scratch might basics the h backpack full of fresh paint, but running throug the surface for those of you who have never picked up a can.
MARKERS When paint i or to o con s too mes sy, to spicu ronm o lar ous f ent, ge o r m your arker Mark envis com ers fi t e easil in ha don’t y in detail. V ndy. make your arying in too m allow more w you wo uch n pocket, artis ays tha u ld ts oise think p n tag i and ossible, can ran n a m to scribb they l g e e a from Sh tter o graffi u t a qui arpies t of se markers ti art o paint cond ck to refill ist time s. Ma a b le s, esp s will car E ink mop n a s y il y t r h e y on s. e mostcially proce e at portable if the ss of medium all graffiti y are , marke bomb are a rs are in in th ing a lso u versatil credibly e city. seful e and c piece Mark onvenie for s with q u e i n ic g r t k s n for a ing a nd easy your tagging large tag, . r or ad B rands t ding o look f fine or: Sak Markal, ura, Krink, Molotow
bandana
The aro prese u n ess nd a ce of ent gra a ial, ff w ban int d e mu nd on even riter’s ana mo ral n d ec oi re giv g esp e y raffit ng an so i k is f th ou eci i. T go ye a or ah ey for xte he poo lly in ead fum nsi too No rly ve es lon ache t to -ve an en wi gw i nti clo of m ith f you ll e la se an n ou pro onym tion ted s d to pac tec the ne, i t y. e. ts cas q e y your A ba uest nd ion ou i d an en get cau tity i na n gh t.
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gloves
Paintcovere d fing to get ertips caugh are an t in the easy w surgic field. ay al glov Leathe e s , or util the be r glove ity glo st. The s, ves wo y are a sketch rk lso he y surfa lpful f ces wh or grip find th en you ping e perf ’re try ect bo ing to mbing spot.
68 A PRI L 2 01 8
BY MARIA JOHNSON
T N I PA
it , or rs ging ost g colo a t t ; m n e , k e l e c r i b u th ffe case sem lack for q ozen di bly any n t a e n i n I i b n d e e s. pa s of nde be a f th ural of th is u part o nt can local ight -scale m ystone t m ct n e ke ge ce erf he Pai rtant the r lar 77 - rom t m, he p o s t f o i s ’ s p t i t f fiti. im pain l paint miu rylic nt er i graf f the o o eth te pai or pre c s t h a o s r w i Aer nd i he a eon wh ore t art. for t ported a e st ns of n and m cien r u fi a i s ed t ef ran dw ca s m t a r o r a y t l m a h l d in . easi spo dol by rea t an old It’s you way, kge a ten ana G ckes r i a u l w q b o a ac h nt su the over Mo is b he t is , to c ain r on t rom h ing y r. a p o l ylon w : Kr g co ing ngers. The -write ling f r l n i o c f k 9 fi N 4 tt nt ff ok stri g o lo ana, MT dle gra oud ra e pai a t d b i s d t l m ’s th Bran w, Mon nd iter st; the or by o er a aff wr e arti k t t k o l c n o h M oi pa gr ac as t is p f bl na to h aint i reatly can o g p e The ary as be on t v s can ght ju i it m
caps
ticed graff and no prac , ti fi af gr art of w often without a fe are not used is complete r e te es ri th w gh . tips Althou ty scribbles of assorted ing up angs baggies full l al when throw at e u ar to their full erpass, if yo g these tips n zi li at ti diffiU th under an ov t street ar of the more in creating may be one t n te ti art, ps ex fi ti interested , af arvel at cts of gr stop and m subtle aspe d an lt d cu ca people will if you n’t to mold an t frustrated al. In order ge ti ’t n n s se do es t so e ar l art, it take guide it ou t. As with al int and to ou pa e it th re e gu r ap u fi sh it right. all to do yo tice to get onto the w me and prac e, ti ag of the can im l fu er p, form a pow for: Fat ca bidding and d of some. Caps to look ol h a t encil ge St d to Outline, you will nee rhaps mark Skinny cap, pe ay m s ed tool ps These refin eur throw-u tween amat be al the line tu the ac dalism and or gang van All you need is an Exac and a sh to knife eet of p la stic to m your ow ake n stencil - then y a reusab ou have le temp late for of graffi a piece ti art. T h is is very especiall useful, y in hig h-traffic if you h areas or ave limit ed time, spread y and to our tag around quickly town as and effi ciently It can ra as possib nge from le. a pocke stencil o t-sized n the w all of an alleyway ,
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stencils
to a ten-foot, four-layer, multicolored stencil on a concrete pillar. These can be quickly thrown up anywhere you can get alone for two minutes, and can spread like wildfire. Stencils also utilize the element of repetition, as each one looks about the same and can be seen everywhere and anywhere you choose to throw it up. D
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Photos by Deanna Black
Photos by Anrdijan Mรถcker
t: Jenny Clockwise from lef brohood Angelillo from Neigh stage the up rs tea Brats th 2017. A group of , 15 er Octob quarter pipe skaters enjoy the . The Dope ard rty cou in the a huge D.O.D gang rap for th 2017. , 26 e Jun crowd on
CASSIOPEIA:
There is no dress code and the age of the visitors varies on the music night
TS UPC OMING EVEN 0.4.18 OSTER BOMBE 3 .18 BLACK LUNG 6.5 .5 .18 BONGRIP PER 20 8 FIRST BLO OD 3.6.1 .1 8 DOPETHR ONE 17.6 EXPIRE 29 .7.18
of course. Beware that the club is a bit off the street, so you might not even notice it. The interesting part is that it gives the impression of a hippie commune environment: rough, alternative and cool. The place is covered with old, graffiti covered buildings and posters that
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contribute to its unique character. The staff is nice and the drinks are pretty affordable. The club offers great variety of concerts and it probably is the best place for underground rap scenes. The crowd is usually pretty diverse; both local and tourist visit the place. Depending on the particular party night one can enjoy hip hop, rap, hard core, drum and base, electronic and retro music concerts.
There is a big beer garden in the summer that gives
you the chance to enjoy the good beer and vivid
surroundings. The usual crowd is pretty relaxed and non violent. The snacks
offered at the beer garden are OK price wise and
quality. To summarize it best, Cassiopeia offers cool location, cool people, and cool music! D
“ GRAFFITI IS ONE OF THE FEW TOOLS
YOU HAVE IF YOU HAVE ALMOST NOTHING. AND EVEN IF YOU DON’T COME UP WITH A PICTURE TO CURE WORLD POVERTY YOU CAN MAKE SOMEONE SMILE WHILE THEY’RE HAVING A PISS.” –BANKSY
for educational purposes only
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