Ghosts of Berlin - "What Nazi regime?"

The aspect that I found most compelling in Ghosts of Berlin was the dilemma of Berlin's rich history and its demons. Ladd often brings up a desire (expectedly so) for Berliners to expunge WWI, fascism and Nazism, the Holocaust, WWII, and the division of East-West Germany from the annals of history -- like taking white-out to an encyclopedia -- and keeping the good times close. But some grave notions linger. The one I would like to pursue, if possible, is how the modern Germany government handles people who demand reparations for physical or mental health problems as a result of the state's past transgressions. Certainly people have come out of the woodwork over the past 20 years, claiming that being stuck in the GDR was deleterious to their quality of life. There's no doubt that Holocaust victims and their families hold a grudge -- are they still the beneficiaries of German restitution?

I found an article on a random German website (stumbleupon.com, of course) that profiled an artist who exemplifies the attitude Berlin has towards its blemished 20th century history. This cat named Jan Vormann went around Berlin for a couple months, filling in holes made by WWII shrapnel with Legos.  It's pretty fantastic.  The artwork recognizes the macabre past of 1930s and '40s Germany and fills the gaps in history that Berliners strived to leave behind with fun, hodgepodge colors. (If I knew how to insert a picture here, I would.)  Vormann's project picked up steam with the public; he quickly roused a team of eager tinkerers. The amusing Plastic movement sheds some light on how the Berlin community -- from what I can tell, Berlin is a community more so than other metropolises -- has tried to recognize-yet-rework its past.

Here's the article:  www.yatzer.com/feed_1696_dispatchwork_in_berlin/

Ladd rephrases this subtle movement time and time again. He points out how one of Hitler's bastions was transformed into a grass-bordered parking lot. He reveals the architectural trends of modern Berlin as having little resemblance to Nazi-era buildings.  The visible Nazi icons that remain are impugned or reformed, but never appreciated for their connection to an evil legacy.

The antipation is pretty unbearable from here on out. I can't wait to find some of the Lego bits around Berlin. I really want to learn about how the Average Johan regards edifices from the Nazi or Communist eras, too. Basically, as summer dawns, I'm looking forward to anything Berlin.