Everyone knows the East Side Gallery, right?

The last remaining stretch of the original curtain that was drawn around West Berlin separating the city both idealogically and physically, until 9 November 1989. It’s a major tourist attraction in Berlin, and a closing window into the Cold War.

But did you know that there are sections of the wall dotted worldwide – and the longest stretch, except from the one in Berlin, isn’t even in Europe?

The Wende Museum’s Wall Along Wilshire project lays claim to that title – showcasing a ten slab piece of the wall stretching almost 40ft in length.

Brought together in LA’s La Brea district on Wilshire Boulevard, this commemorated the 20th anniversary of the fall of the wall and combined local, international and original artists.

Berlin street artist Bimer, known for his bears, painted his section before it was transported to LA. Once the Wall segments arrived in the states, four artists painted five segments in public view.

Two of the segments were commissioned by the renowned LA-based muralist Kent Twitchell. Another segment was painted by the French-born, Berlin-based artist Thierry Noir, one of the first artists to paint on the Berlin Wall in the early 1980s.

Farrah Karapetian and Marie Astrid González, two emerging artists from Los Angeles, each painted the remaining two segments making this a truly unique section of the wall.

Check out this mini documentary this Sunday about the project back in 2009.

Unfortunately when I was in LA the Wende Museum was undergoing a move, otherwise a visit to the rest of the collection would have been brilliant. But for those of you who’ll be around that area in Autumn 2017 – a visit to the reopening in the National Guard Armoury is one to consider.

Get all the information you need on the Wende Museum website.

Steven
UKB