The Evolving Legacy of Lennon's Wall: From Art Interventions to a Global Landmark
After 2000, the wall became one of the main Prague landmarks mentioned in tourist guides. The appearance of Lennon's Wall has changed many times and gradually it has become a place that has little in common with its original form and atmosphere. After 2000, some even began to refer to it as the "Tourist Wall".
The theft of this painting attracted media attention. Police officers on the Charles Bridge caught two thieves carrying the stolen painting.
The men claimed that the painting was theirs and that they could prove it in peace. Then they claimed they found it propped up by the garbage cans near Kampa. During a security search, the police found two knives on one of the men and confiscated the painting.
In November 2000, members of the Rafani art group made a controversial intervention in the then appearance of Lennon's wall by completely repainting it green. They then placed the word "Love" in the centre of the wall. This act was intended as an artistic response to the political situation at the time, which was characterised by public disillusionment with the political changes after 1989. The group criticised the commercialisation and loss of the original meaning of the Lennon Wall as a symbol of freedom and peace.
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The Rafans' action attracted a lot of attention and stimulated discussions about the true meaning of the Lennon Wall in the new millennium. Their intervention was seen by many as highly controversial. Gradually, numerous Lennon-style inscriptions began to appear on the wall. The wall remained a vibrant and changing space for the public expression of ideas and emotions.
In 2003, a temporary Yoko Ono exhibition was held at the nearby Kampa Museum. The exhibition gallery organised a media meeting at the Lennon Wall, with photographs taken of Yoko Ono, who signed her name on the wall, lit a candle and wrote a few messages in small print.
In 2019, on the 30th anniversary of the fall of the communist regime, an event called Meet Art took place, where around twenty artists, led by artist and designer Pavel Št'astný, painted and decorated the wall with the words "Freedom" and "All you need is love" in thirty languages, among others. The wall was subsequently to be monitored more closely by cameras and police, and any vandals were to be prosecuted. As time has shown, this intention of the Prague administration has backfired, as has the artistic solution of the artists around Št'astný, which did not last long on the wall.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons - David Sedlecký and Robbie Morrison, AP Photo/Petr David Josek (Yoko Ono)
Source: BLAŽEK, Petr; LAUBE, Roman; POSPÍŠIL, Filip.
Lennonova zeď v Praze: Studie, rozhovory, dokumenty. Praha: Muzeum paměti XX. století, 2020. 536 s.
ISBN 978-80-907989-0-8.
