This year, Germany will once again commemorate the fall of the Wall on 9 November, which divided Berlin into East and West for more than 28 years. To commemorate the memorable moment, Catawiki - a leading online marketplace for buying and selling special objects - is hosting an auction that will set the hearts of Berlin, history and street art fans alike racing: Between 08 and 18 October 2021, the hand-signed painting "The Bridge" by Kiddy Citny and Thierry Noir will go under the hammer - the estimated sale price is around 20,000 to 25,000 euros, according to expert estimates.
Art that tells a story
The two artists Kiddy Citny and Thierry Noir have been an integral part of the street art scene in Berlin since the 1980s and are among the pioneers of the community. The so-called wall painters regularly risked their lives to embellish the Berlin Wall with their art and at the same time point out the absurdity of the protective wall and set a sign for peace and freedom - hundreds of metres of wall stones have since shone in the striking, eye-catching style of the two artists.
The painting "The Bridge" up for auction on Catawiki was created in 2019 as part of an exhibition commemorating the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Wall. For this, Citny and Noir restored the parts of the old border between East and West Berlin they had designed on two memorialised wall segments at Leipziger Platz. In the course of the restoration, they created the joint painting (130 x 2 x 260 cm) with acrylic on canvas that commemorates the section of the Berlin Wall in this area.
"Wall segments that Thierry and I painted on the West Berlin Wall in 1985 went around the world after the fall of the Wall as a symbol of the New Freedom. They were auctioned off in Monaco in 1990 and ended up in eminent art collections," says Kiddy Citny. "The German Unity stands for peace and freedom and we are happy to now present our joint work to Catawiki fans."
"We are honoured that the two artists are trustingly placing the auction of their work in our hands. Kiddy Citny and Thierry Noir are pioneers of the Berlin street art scene and, as part of the Wall Painters, helped shape pop culture during this challenging time as well as giving people a bit of freedom and peace - a truly special object, not only for art lovers," says Anke Sperling, Modern and Contemporary Art Expert at Catawiki. "We are pleased to be able to offer this really special object to a broad public on Catawiki - because this artwork is not only interesting for art lovers."
In addition to "The Bridge", another work by Kiddy Citny will also be on sale: EinzSein from 1990, which also stands for unification and cohesion. This work of art is also hand-signed and is estimated by Catawiki expert Anke Sperling at around 8,000 euros.
