Building sense of belonging through Artwork. Youth inspired graffiti in Kiel

Sea creatures in the water, a ship on the high seas, a sunken treasure chest, and much more are depicted in a new, massive, and legal graffiti in downtown Kiel. In Hopfenstraße youngsters have created a new artwork on a building wall at the city playground. The maritime graffiti is six meters high and 14 meters long. It includes symbols of mourning. The central inscription “Baltic Pearl” celebrates Kiel as a Cultural Pearl of the Baltic Sea Region.

The group of grieving adolescents of the association Trauernde Kinder Schleswig-Holstein actively participated in the conception and creation of the detailed image. The association is located in Lerchenstraße, just around the corner from the playground.

The group is made up of young people who have lost a loved one through death. They were able to express their ideas, feelings, and thoughts about grief in the graffiti. ‘Something really great and colourful has been created – something that will last,’ says Birgit Foerster, who has been supporting the youth group as a volunteer for many years.

Artistic impulses for the concept of the artwork came from the Kiel graffiti studio Vanartizm. Christoph Kröger, together with Sascha Gremmel and Linn Johanna Johannsen, spent many hours realizing the youths’ ideas. “For me, the best part is always how ideas and small drawings – sometimes only a centimetre in size – turn into such a beautiful work with a bit of teamwork,” says Christoph Kröger.

The community work was funded by the state capital Kiel awarded the BSR Cultural Pearl Title 2024. Cultural education for children and youths plays a central role. Project leader Annette Wiese-Krukowska initiated the cooperation between the association and the graffiti studio and is very satisfied with the result.