Gunter Demnig (born 27 October 1947 in Berlin) is a German artist. He is best known for his '' Stolperstein'' ("stumbling block") memorials to the victims of Nazi persecution, including Jews, homosexuals, Romani and the disabled. The project places engraved brass stones in front of a former residence for a Holocaust victim who was deported and murdered by Nazi Germany, began in Germany and has since spread, with more than 90,000 stones placed across 26 countries in Europe.

Biography

Gunter Demnig grew up in Nauen and Berlin and acquired his ''

abitur ''Abitur'' (), often shortened colloquially to ''Abi'', is a qualification granted at the end of secondary education in Germany. It is conferred on students who pass their final exams at the end of ISCED 3, usually after twelve or thirteen year ...

'' in 1967. Later that year, he began studying creative education at Berlin University of the Arts with Professor

Herbert Kaufmann Herbert Kaufmann (24 August 1920 – 27 November 1976) was a German Ethnologist, journalist, photographer and writer. He is known for his body of work concerning Africa, particularly – in the English-speaking world – his translated novel, '' ...

. From 1969 to 1970, he studied industrial design there. In 1971, he transferred to the ''

Kunsthochschule Kassel Kunsthochschule Kassel (German; "Kassel College of Art") is a college of fine arts in Kassel, Germany. Founded in 1777, it is a semi-autonomous department of the University of Kassel . Notable people * Daniel Stieglitz * Peter Angermann * Si ...

'', resuming his study of creative education and passed the first state examination in 1974. That same year, he began studying art with Harry Kramer at the University of Kassel. Following that, he spent two years planning, building and managing historical monuments, from 1977 to 1979. From 1980 to 1985, Demnig was an artistic-scientific colleague on the art faculty at the University of

Kassel Kassel (; in Germany, spelled Cassel until 1926) is a city on the Fulda River in northern Hesse, Germany. It is the administrative seat of the Regierungsbezirk Kassel and the district of the same name and had 201,048 inhabitants in December 2020 ...

. In 1985, he opened his own studio in Cologne and worked on numerous local projects. Since 1994, he has also been involved with the ''IGNIS-Kulturzentrum'' (IGNIS Cultural Center). Demnig's best known work is what he calls ''Stolpersteine''. '' Stolperstein'' (in the singular) is the German word for "stumbling block". Demnig's ''Stolpersteine'' are small, cobblestone-sized brass

memorials A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, Tragedy (event), tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objec ...

for the victims of

National Socialism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...

. Set into the pavement of sidewalks in front of the buildings where Nazi victims once lived or worked, they call attention both to the individual victim and the scope of the Nazi war crimes. By 2017, about 61,000 ''Stolpersteine'' had been laid in 21 countries in Europe, making the project the world's largest memorial.

Works

*1980: Odor marks, Cassel-Paris *1981: Blood spot, Kassel-London *1988: Travel to West Berlin *1993: Conceives '' Stolpersteine'' project *1997: First two ''Stolpersteine'' installed at the invitation of Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service founder

Andreas Maislinger Andreas Maislinger (born 26 February 1955 in St. Georgen near Salzburg, Austria) is an Austrian historian and political scientist and founder and chairman of the Austrian Service Abroad, including the Gedenkdienst, the Austrian Social Service an ...

for the brothers Matthias and Johann Nobis, with legal permit from St. Georgen (near Salzburg)"''Stolpersteine'' zur mahnenden Erinnerung"
Press release, Austrian news archive. (July 17, 1997) *2000: Project ''Stolpersteine'' continues, acquiring permits to install the memorials

Shows

*1982: Alte Oper, Frankfurt am Main *1986: ''Kunsthalle Baden-Baden'', Museum of the City of Cologne *1991: ''Kunstlerhaus Bethanien'', Berlin *1995: Academy of Arts, Berlin

Stolpersteine in different countries

* ''Austria'': Stolpersteine in the district of Braunau am Inn * ''Belgium'':

Stolpersteine in Charleroi This article describes all Stolpersteine that have been placed in Charleroi, Belgium. ''Stolpersteine'' is the German word for stumbling blocks placed all over Europe by German artist Gunter Demnig. They remember the fates of people who were murde ...

* ''Czech Republic'': ''Prague'': Josefov,

Malá Strana Malá Strana (Czech for "Little Side (of the River)", ) or more formally Menší Město pražské () is a district of the city of Prague, Czech Republic, and one of its most historic neighbourhoods. In the Middle Ages, it was a dominant center o ...

, Vršovice and Modřany — Královéhradecký kraj, Ústecký kraj * ''Germany'': Lake Constance district,

Weingarten Weingarten may refer to: Places * Weingarten, Württemberg, Germany ** Weingarten Abbey * Weingarten (Baden), Germany * Weingarten, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany * Weingarten, Thuringia, Germany * Weingarten, Switzerland * Weingarten, Missouri ...

* ''Netherlands'' * Ireland: St Catherine's school, Donore Avenue, Dublin https://www.holocausteducationireland.org/news-events/embedding-of-irelands-first-stolpersteine

References

External links

Stolpersteine website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Demnig, Gunter 1947 births Living people German artists Stolpersteine Articles containing video clips Recipients of the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Order of Merit of Baden-Württemberg