Prague, Oct 2 (CTK) – An unusual temporary monument to German poet Johann Wolfgang Goethe was unveiled in Prague Friday, consisting of a historical plinth that contemporary Czech artist Jiri David complemented with a wheelbarrow loaded with debris including various objects such as books written by Goethe.
Apart from the books, the objects in the wheelbarrow include fragments of a painter’s canvas, cigarette butts, a payment card, a newspaper and fragments of a computer.
The monument to Goethe (1749-1832) was unveiled in front of the Goethe Institute building to mark the 25th anniversary of the institute’s Prague branch.
Prague Mayor Adriana Krnacova was among the guests to the ceremony.
In the past, the plinth bore a bust of Goethe from 1883 that was installed outside the Grandhotel Pupp in Karlovy Vary, west Bohemia, in remembrance of Goethe’s 13 visits to the spa resort.
After World War Two, the monument was removed. In 1952, Goethe’s bust reappeared on a new plinth elsewhere in Karlovy Vary.
The old plinth was missing for a long time before being uncovered last year.
The Goethe Institute has installed it with David’s wheelbarrow atop it outside its seat.
“It is an obvious reminiscence of false idols, a debate about contemporary sculptural art. It is a reflected self-irony…,” David said about his contribution to the artifact.
Although the monument looks far from seriously, it is a very serious work of art, he said.
Amused by David’s work of art, a representative of the Goethe Institute labelled it as typically Czech.
The Goethe Institute’s Prague branch was established after the fall of the Iron Curtain in 1990 to present German culture and arts. It is considered a symbol of the post-1989 relations between Germany and the Czech Republic.
