1-sweet-home-Installation
Connected with the participative art project hOme sweet hOme we‘ve planned several exhibitions in Schonnebeck that reflected and explored the nature of the private living-space, the immediate surrounding of the people in Zollverein district. Our main installation, a hidden paradise took place at the Karl-Meyer-Platz market place where in former times a market fountain stood. The paradise, a garden oasis with a tree, plants and flowers was surrounded by a fence of printed, semi-transparent, fabric that depicted the inhabitants of Schonnebeck with arms held out to form a protective chain of people.
2-sweet-Home-titel
As in 2016 in Katernber we asked the same question, what does »home« and »at home in Schonnebeck« mean. This question is taken further by asking »what is the nature of our living space? Where are the familiar places – in Schonnebeck and the world? What is special here? Which plant, what greenery suits Schonnebeck?
Within the overall subject of hOme sweet hOme we were working with the idea of how new ideas can build on traditions, in the same way as the identity of the borough is built on its history.
The plants of the coalmining area were used as ‘rubbed’ or embroidered symbols on the traditional cloth of the coalminers called Grubentuch. Tradirtionally, this was used for wiping off the coal dust. Everybody in this area knows this fabric and its meaning. We got this cloth from the museum of industry in Bocholt, where it is woven on the historic looms.
From this cloth we produced hats as a symbol of caring and protecting. Then we embroidered on these hats with the growing plant motifs. The embroidery workshops in the market and the refugee home became almost meditative and radiated a sense of calm. Passers-by approached us and asked if they could take part. At first, the participants were mainly children but after a while people of all ages, ethnicities and from all sections of society took part.
3-sweet-home-viele-erreichen
The aim was to reach and involve as many people as possible in their own home, in the market place, in the refugee home, in the youth centre, in the shopping areas and in their gardens.
4-sweet-home-card
On a handwritten card, people created their portrait in a personal statement about their own socio-cultural location, in the youth centre, in the gardens or at their home.
5-sweet-home-sticken
In 2017 in Schonnebeck the concept was to motivate the inhabitants in public spaces to sit with us and do embroidery on a textil »Grubentuch« that is traditional for this area. The concept behind was to create sth new on the valuable memory of the area.
6-sweet-home-markt
In 2017 in Schonnebeck the concept was to motivate the inhabitants in public spaces to sit with us and do embroidery on a textil »Grubentuch« that is traditional for this area. The concept behind was to create sth new on the valuable memory of the area.
7-sweet-home-loveletter
This young lady who just arrived as refugee from Senegal used the self-embroidered cloth as a nonverbal letter to her beloved ones she left behind.
8-1-sweet-home-ausstellung-Hüte
The themes of embroidery are plants and flowers , which symbolically grow on traditional cloth. From this cloth we produced hats and jackets as a symbol of caring and protecting. They were exhibited in the flourishing surrounding of an urban gardening project that we also wanted to promote in the community.
8-2-sweet-home-Hände
On July 1 the opening of one of the three exhibitions took place in a local pub. The main theme of this exhibition was the people of Schonnebeck, their statements and portraits, the creative workshops and the video-interviews with four persons
from Schonnebeck.
8-3-sweet-Home-Hände
Being »foreign and different« was subject of the exhibited stitching hands in contrast to the theme »here I am at home and feel good about« – a continious subject of conversation during the exhibition.
9-sweet-home-paradise
Hidden Paradise, Installation in the market place
Based on our artistic workshops and conversations with the inhabitants it ensued that the green and natural surroundind is very important but seems to be unreachable or lost for many reasons.
10-sweet-home-paradise
The splendour of a hidden enclosed garden increased the desire to get in. This image triggered the question if the fence is there to keep people out or to protect the nature inside, exclude or include.
11-sweet-home-paradise-inside
The paradise presented ecology as an alien presence, and adressed the need for a new way of thinking about sustainable food production. In this way it acted as a kind of sign-post to the Bonnekamp Foundation and by extension the possibility to take on some of its progressive ideas about ecology and sustainability.
12-sweet-home-kids
The hidden paradise became a challenge when some youngsters started to destroying elements of the installation and other local people informally started to police and protect the installation. And other residents started a signature campaign to keep the tree in the center of the paved market place.
13-sweet-home-Abbau
When we had to take the installation down, we donated the plants to the local people, to give the project a continuation in their foregardens and balconies.
14-sweet-home-Abbau
When we had to take the installation down, we donated the plants to the local people, to give the project a continuation in their foregardens and balconies.
15-sweet-home-Rathaus
The Stoppenberg town hall is in the centre of the Zollverein district and houses the local council that represents the boroughs Katernberg, Stoppenberg and Schonnebeck. We decided to make this townhall to the center of our activities.
16-sweet-Home-Embleme
Just as we created the Emblem for Katernberg, which is an adaption of the local fountain, so we developed a logo for Schonnebeck and Stoppenberg. These emblems were stenciled on textile bags and, in connection with hOme sweet hOme, could be worn as a personal flag to represent the borough.
17-sweet-home-Fahne
At the Stoppenberg town hall, we discovered a disused flag pole. Here we made the plan to develop a flag that brings all three boroughs together.
18-sweet-home-Fahne-abbild
The flag raising concluded the project for the whole district and displays the three emblems of the boroughs along with the hOme sweet hOme emblem. The overlapping hands on the flag, that derive from the Hidden Paradise photographic banner, symbolize the solidarity of this community based participatory project.