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18. 12. 09. - 16:00

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18. 12. 09. - 16:00

Memorial to Nazis' homosexual victims cancelled

By Lisa Chapman

Plans for a monument to homosexual and transgender victims of the Nazis in Vienna have been shelved – because artists could not find the right colour for it.

Hans Kupelwieser had won a competition 2006 with plans for a 20x20 metre water basin full of pink-coloured water and the word "Que(e)r" written across it to be placed at Morzin square.

But Social Democratic (SPÖ) cultural councillor Andreas Mailath-Pokorny said the project had been called off because of a failure to find a colour suitable for daily use. He said: "We really wanted it to become a reality."

A spokeswoman for Mailath-Pokorny added that the comprehensive renovation of Morzin square would feature a new competition for a memorial.

But SPÖ city development councillor Rudolf Schicker’s office had said there are no concrete plans for the square’s renovation and none would be made "for the foreseeable future."

Instead, two temporary projects are to be erected on the square next year for which Matthias Herrmann, the head of art and photography classes at Vienna’s Academy of Fine Arts, will act as curator.

He said he would consult artistic colleagues about temporary exhibits on the square by contemporary artists to guarantee it would not become "a memorial to real-estate."

He added that each one of the Nazis’ victims, who have often been forgotten, should receive public visibility through art on the square.

Marco Schreuder, a spokesman for the Green party’s department for gay issues, said: "Considering that there are hardly any survivors and the lesbian, transgender and gay community has been waiting for years for a memorial to its persecution, I find the cancellation of the project extremely disappointing," he said.

Schreuder called for an immediate new competition with the cooperation of lesbians, transgenders and gays.

Austrian Times

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