The monument was designed by Danish artists Michael Elmgreen and Ingar Dragset who have been collaborating as an artist duo for over ten years.
From DB Artmag:
Beneath the wood is a massive 83-ton cement stele, the Monument to Homosexuals Persecuted During National Socialism, which has not yet been inaugurated. A short time ago, the carefully packed monument was brought from its production site in Munich to Berlin and raised by a special crane onto its designated spot. Now, the oversized moving crate looks somewhat surreal in the Prussian park landscape. But there was a "ceremonial atmosphere" when it arrived, according to Michael Elmgreen.
The wooden crate is opened on one side, exposing concrete treated in a dark color and an inlaid window that provides a view of a video projection inside the massive slab. Here, one sees a scene that repeats itself in one-and-a-half-minute loops: two young men in a park, immersed in a tender conversation interrupted again and again by a kiss. The video will be shown for two years, after which it will be replaced with a work by another artist. The reason for this changeover, which was not part of the original plan, was the massive criticism the monument was subjected to prior to its realization. It was alleged that lesbians were not adequately represented by the images.
"We weren't concerned with providing a definitive answer to the representation of homosexuality," says Elmgreen, and adds that the artists are more than happy with a change of video every two years.
In any case, the idea of a continuous renewal fits in well with Elmgreen's & Dragset's idea of a living memorial.
Labels: art, politics