Walls of Berlin - An Appartment Building Across the Times [CCC's Street Art Contest #168]

Having had the privilege of serving as a guest judge at last week's CCC's Street Art Contest, I am now excited to present a mural I found in Teltow, a small town on the outskirts of Berlin. It's exact location is the Liselotte Herrmann Straße 2 a-c, on the corner of Mahlower Straße, and right next to the S-Bahn station Teltow Stadt.

It is the side of the apartment block facing the street, and on its flat, windowless surface a multi-storey image was painted. It depicts everyday life in Teltow from around the turn of the century, the 1930's, the 1960's, and finally our modern days. An informative plaque in front of it leaves no doubt as to the contents of the image.

On the ground level we get to see two worlds from around 1900. On the right side the family of an affluent "director" posing for a photography, and on the left side a carrot farmer. At this time the Teltow canal was built, connecting the village with greater Berlin.

One floor above, we find ourselves around 1930, when Teltow has become industrialized. The family of the engineer on the right is proudly sporting a telephone and a bicycle, though the factory worker's place on the left does not show horrible poverty either.

On the second floor (above ground level), we can see a scene from exactly 1963, as the sign informs us. This is when the new living city has been finished for residents to move into. So in spite of the vibrant music and the Beatles inspired fashion, we should not forget that this was communist East Germany at the height of the cold war. After all, Teltow is just outside Berlin. I even remember riding through here following the Berlin Wall Bike Trail.

Finally on the top floor, we see a scene from the present of 2005 (though it is also almost from two decades ago), when Teltow was connected to the S-Bahn line. The sliding balcony doors give us a feel of modernity, and the kids' fashion... is on the brink of becoming enjoyably (out)dated. Though in comparison to the floors below, the teenager's dreadlocks and the kid's baseball cap leave little doubt about it: this is the present, take it or leave it.

The plaque also mentions the housing association that commissioned the work, but as for the artists, the only thing it tells us is that they were German and French artists. On various other walls of the building you can also find murals of photos from various times. My favorite one is the motocross club, probably from the 1970's.

If you enjoyed this mural, I invite you to take a look at my post collection of the street art I have come across in Berlin, titled The Walls of Berlin.