Cartoon frieze for memorial
Erfurt, Germany
A wonderful example of how art and architecture can come together for the perfect union, this memorial incorporated digital printing and chromium plating on glass panels.
Digital printing and chromium plating were used to apply every detail of the high-resolution motifs to the heat-soaked, thermally-toughened safety glass panels at this memorial in Erfurt. This technically challenging process allowed the client, Gedenk-und Bildungsstätte Andreasstraße, to recreate the original design.
The storey-high individual elements and their installation were
straightforward thanks to the Airtec glass system. It covered an area of 220m2, following an architectural design created by Metallbau Möller GmbH and Peter Knapp GmbH. The cartoon frieze is unique, detailed and bespoke, acting as a reminder of the historic events from 1989 when the Stasi headquarters in the GDP was occupied.
The glass panels are oversized, which adds to the powerful aesthetic appeal of this memorial. Stiftung Ettersberg, the trust backing the memorial, wanted the design to follow the style of a graphic novel. It was drawn by cartoonist Simon Schwartz using Indian ink drawings. The memorial has captured these for many decades to come thanks to the hightech methods used for preserving the illustrations.
