A Monument That Lasts!
Back of the East Side Gallery during a survey on its preservation, 2025 © Berlin Wall Foundation, photo: Dong-Ha Choe
The East Side Gallery is more than just a section of the Berlin Wall – it is a unique artistic and cultural heritage site of international significance. In 1990, 118 artists painted the remains of the Berlin Wall; in 1991, the State of Berlin listed the East Side Gallery as a listed building. Ensuring its long-term preservation is a particular challenge: weather, erosion and conflicting interests have affected the monument from the very beginning.
Conservation of ‘Hands’, the last original mural from 1990, 3 September 2020 © Berlin Wall Foundation
The initiative “A Monument Lasts!” was launched on the occation of the 35th anniversary of the East Side Gallery on 28 September 2025. It draws together the maintenance and conservation work carried out over the past decades, promotes research and monitoring, and fosters interdisciplinary exchange with various specialist fields. It provides an impuls to define, for the first time, a concrete roadmap for measures to restore and maintain the murals and the East Side Gallery as a work of art.
Discussions and Challenges
The East Side Gallery exists at the intersection of originality and reconstruction, preservation and change, museum and public space, as well as artwork and building fabric. Numerous restorations and interventions–both in the field of heritage conservation and the arts—have shaped it over the years, yet key questions remain unanswered:
- How can the monument be safeguarded in the long term—in a technically sound and socially supported manner?
- Which historical layers should be preserved?
- What approach is recommended for the restoration work?
- What changes are justifiable to carry the monument into the future?
- And how can contemporary art and heritage conservation be meaningfully combined?
Last but not least, the question arises as to what form of authenticity the over four million annual visitors attribute to this monument.
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1987 – Mühlenstraße, with the Berlin Wall, serving as a ‘protocol route’ for state guests of the GDR © Berlin Wall Foundation, photo: Gerd Danigel, ddr-fotograf.de, CCA-S A 4.0 International
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1990 – the East Side Gallery is created, stretching 1.3 kilometres in length © Berlin Wall Foundation
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1993 – the East Side Gallery is repeatedly defaced; here with the words “Total Democracy” © Berlin Wall Foundation, photo: Günter Preuss
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2004 – crumbling concrete and faded colours © Berlin Wall Foundation, photo: Yvonne Kavermann
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2009 – the East Side Gallery is completely renovated; here, a new mural by Ignasi Blanch, © Berlin Wall Foundation, photo: Angel Burgas
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2021 – Individual artists are constantly touching up their murals; here, Teresa Casanueva © Berlin Wall Foundation
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2026 – despite maintenance and care provided by the Berlin Wall Foundation, damage continues to occur © Berlin Wall Foundation
Exchange
Together with the German Foundation for Monument Protection, we drew attention to the current state of damage at the East Side Gallery in September 2025. During the panel discussion, we addressed fundamental issues concerning the preservation of the monument. In more detail, experts from various disciplines exchanged views on damage, monitoring and possible courses of action during the workshop discussion ‘Identity – Preservation – Future’.
In addition to the specialist public, we also surveyed tourists and spoke with artists to gain an understanding of their expectations and key areas of interest. In participatory workshops, the perspectives of school pupils and international students were discussed and incorporated into the project.
Investigate, Observe and Communicate
The East Side Gallery is being systematically investigated: all damage to the wall and the murals is being recorded in a digital mapping in order to analyse the progression and dynamics of the damage. At the same time, measurements – such as temperature – are being used to identify the causes of the damage. As part of a pilot project and using test areas, practical and theoretical questions regarding the care and conservation of selected murals are being addressed, and procedures for the East Side Gallery are being derived from the results.
A new focus is adopted in historical and political education to raise awareness of the monument and conservation efforts, make traces of history visible and foster a sense of identification with the monument.
Evaluate
The findings, experiences and analyses gathered will be gradually collated and evaluated. The aim is to establish concrete guidelines for restoration work, maintenance and the future management of damage. The results will be made publicly available in order to provide impulses for the handling of complex monuments in urban spaces beyond the scope of the project. This will create a practical and robust foundation for the future of the East Side Gallery – balancing preservation, change and public participation.
The Berlin Wall Foundation is working with officials at state and district level (the Berlin State Office for the Preservation of Historical Monuments and the Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg District Office for the Preservation of Historical Monuments), artists from the gallery, and experts who engage with the East Side Gallery from a variety of perspectives. The aim is to examine the research and conservation measures from different angles and to implement a collectively agreed approach.
The consultants will support all phases of the project. They will ensure that expertise from fields such as art, monument preservation, restoration, civil engineering and academia is incorporated.
Buch & Schudrowitz
Buch & Schudrowitz Restauratoren GbR is a Berlin-based company specialising in heritage conservation and restoration. CEO Andreas Schudrowitz and his colleague Laura Bluhm have been managing restoration projects at the East Side Gallery for many years.
Prof. Dr. Christoph Herm
Prof. Dr Christoph Herm holds the Chair of Natural Sciences and Archaeometry at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts. His teaching and research focus on materials science includes art conservation and monument preservation.
Sandra Jäntsch
Sandra Jäntsch works as a engineer at Wismar University of Applied Sciences. Her teaching and research focus on concrete materials, structural protection and surface behaviour, with a particular emphasis on the analysis, optimisation and maintenance of structures.
Prof. Dr. Marcus Santner
Prof. Dr Markus Santner is a professor of art technology and restoration of mural painting at the Dresden Academy of Fine Arts. His teaching and research focus on technical and preservation-oriented issues relating to historical mural painting.
Prof. Dr. Ingrid Scheurmann
Prof. Dr Ingrid Scheurmann is a historian and conservationist. She teaches and conducts research on the history, theory and communication of heritage conservation, and has been actively involved in projects run by the German Foundation for Monument Protection for many years.
Dr. Konrad Scheurmann
Dr Konrad Scheurmann is an art historian specialising in architectural analysis and exhibition design. He led the BMBF collaborative research project ‘Colour as an Actor and Repository’ and is currently involved in research projects exploring the materiality and significance of colour.
Funding
The initiative is supported by:
Online-Exhibition
You can find more information about the East Side Gallery, the participating artists, the restoration, and many other topics here.