In early July 2022 a proposal was submitted for the art-for-architecture competition for the Feldbergschule in Mainz. A new sports hall is to be built for this primary school. A flight of stairs with an artistic design is to be placed in front of its façade.
in the surroundings
(photomontage)
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in the surroundings
(photomontage)
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in the surroundings
(photomontage)
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The surface available for this art is a large rectangular area, the side of a flight of stairs. It is in front of the façade, and conceals the stairs of the emergency exit behind it. Thus there is a functional reason for the stair motif.
The stair motif stands for progress step by step, and corresponds to the course of school education. For this reason, every real flight of stairs in the surroundings of a school building also has a symbolic meaning: progressing, moving forwards step by step.
When art for architecture employs the symbolically charged stair motif, it reinforces the semantics of the existing stairs. The flight of stairs on the façade gains a symbolic meaning.
The mural with the stair motif is animated by inversions and optical illusions, making the stairs into a puzzle that causes the beholder to look for orientation. A course of education is not as straightforward and easy to grasp as a simple flight of stairs, but is a more complex process. This complexity is reflected in the formal structure of the image. It turns a depiction into a symbol.
With its radiant colours, the mural will enliven the schoolyard. It emanates optimism and joy. It stimulates imagination and creativity. The dominance of red is a response to the red façade of the school.
In this way, the mural becomes an identifying feature of the Feldbergschule.