In association with the Christchurch City Council, Fiksate has had the honour to be involved with the upkeep and mural installations on two pieces of the Berlin Wall here in Christchurch, located in Rauora, the East Frame (Cashel Street edge).

Christchurch is one of many cities around the world with pieces of this wall, which served as a symbol of the Cold War, segregation and despair, but also such a powerful symbol of hope and freedom once it started coming down.
Graffiti on the Berlin Wall always played a roll in its existence and the pieces of the wall are documented and collated as they get new artwork installed.

The Berlin Wall sections have been in Christchurch since 2017 to mark the 30th anniversary of its fall, and we installed the first murals in January 2019 with one side featuring visiting artists Robert Seikon (Pol) and Anastasia Papleonedia (GR) and the other side being installed by the Fiksate crew Dr. Suits, Jen & Bols. (Image 1 & 2)

Covid-19 put a hiatus on the installations for the rest of 2019, but we were finally able to organise for two incredibly talented local artists Kophie Su’a-Hulsbosch (Meep) and Jessie Rawcliffe to install the second murals on each side of the wall this month! (Image 3 & 4)

Kophie Su'a-Hulsbosch's Concept:
"After researching the Berlin Wall and specifically the fall of the Berlin Wall, the main concept I took away from it, was the idea of freedom. So many families and friends were divided by the wall and were persecuted if they tried to cross and 138 people died crossing the wall. When the wall finally came down in 1991 it was widely celebrated and it was said the Berliners had “the greatest street party in the history of the world.” As well as this the wall was covered in graffiti expressing the need for the wall to be taken down “Tor auf!” (“Open the gate!”) “Only today,” one Berliner spray-painted on a piece of the wall, “is the war really over.

I chose to focus my concept on the idea of the love and freedom expressed by the fall of the Berlin Wall and to celebrate one people coming together. I wanted my graphic to look like a party through the use of bright colours and clash of patterns."

Jessie Rawcliffe's Concept:
"My concept presents a kaitiaki (guardian) type figure gracefully emerging from the darkness and turning her face upwards towards light and warmth. It's evocative of growth, harmony and peace."