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German artists behind Brooklyn Bridge flag stunt: 'We got some angry emails' Brooklyn Bridge flag artists fear stunt will bar them from return to US
(35 minutes later)
Almost exactly a month ago, two German artists hauled themselves up the towers of the Brooklyn Bridge in the dead of night for what the New York Times described as the stunt of the summer: replacing the stars and stripes that usually ripple over the landmark with two plain white flags.Now, just a week after they confessed to being responsible for the stunt, carried out within view of the New York police department headquarters, Matthias Wermke and Mischa Leinkauf admit they are coming to terms with the consequences of their very public exhibition of “non-commissioned art”.“We knew that the piece in all probability would prevent us from ever returning to the states,” Wermke and Leinkauf told the Guardian in an exchange of emails. “However, it always was clear that we would claim responsibility. From a legal standpoint it might not seem logical, but for us this is the very purpose of the piece. I must admit that it was a very hard decision to make.”In the media, the stunt was treated as something of a joke. Gothamist headlined its article: “Surrender, Brooklyn: Mysterious White Flags Top Brooklyn Bridge.”But for the NYPD, it was an embarrassing security breach, committed right on their doorstep and on one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks. The NYPD would much prefer that New Yorkers consider the possibility of an attack on Brooklyn Bridge as being confined to movies such as Independence Day. An investigation was launched, but even though Wermke and Leinkauf remained in Brooklyn for a short time to witness the reaction to their stunt, they were able to slip out of the country unhindered.Two weeks later the police commissioner, William Bratton, claimed to have a very good idea about who carried out the stunt. “When we have the proof, we’ll move,” he told CBS. “We’ve put, as you might appreciate, exhaustive efforts into this investigation,” he said. The NYPD has been more reticent since the authors of the stunt revealed themselves. Almost exactly a month ago, two German artists hauled themselves up the towers of the Brooklyn Bridge in the dead of night for what the New York Times described as the stunt of the summer: replacing the stars and stripes that usually ripple over the landmark with two white versions.Now, just a week after they confessed to being responsible for the stunt, carried out within view of the New York police department headquarters, Matthias Wermke and Mischa Leinkauf admit they are coming to terms with the consequences of their very public exhibition of “non-commissioned art”.“We knew that the piece in all probability would prevent us from ever returning to the States,” Wermke and Leinkauf told the Guardian in an exchange of emails. “However, it always was clear that we would claim responsibility. From a legal standpoint it might not seem logical, but for us this is the very purpose of the piece. I must admit that it was a very hard decision to make.”In the media, the stunt was treated as something of a joke. Gothamist headlined its article: “Surrender, Brooklyn: Mysterious White Flags Top Brooklyn Bridge.”But for the NYPD, it was an embarrassing security breach, committed right on their doorstep and on one of the city’s most recognisable landmarks. The NYPD would much prefer that New Yorkers consider the possibility of an attack on Brooklyn Bridge as being confined to movies such as Independence Day. An investigation was launched, but even though Wermke and Leinkauf remained in Brooklyn for a short time to witness the reaction to their stunt, they were able to slip out of the country unhindered.
Two weeks later the police commissioner, William Bratton, claimed to have a very good idea about who carried out the stunt. “When we have the proof, we’ll move,” he told CBS. “We’ve put, as you might appreciate, exhaustive efforts into this investigation,” he said. The NYPD has been more reticent since the authors of the stunt revealed themselves.
Asked to comment on Tuesday, a spokesman provided a prepared statement: “The NYPD is aware of the public statements made by the German artists, Mishcha Leinkauf and Matthias Wermke, in regard to the Brooklyn Bridge flag case. The investigation is continuing.” The artists, who being advised by lawyers in the US and in Germany, said they didn’t want to speculate on the legal repercussions of their performance.Asked to comment on Tuesday, a spokesman provided a prepared statement: “The NYPD is aware of the public statements made by the German artists, Mishcha Leinkauf and Matthias Wermke, in regard to the Brooklyn Bridge flag case. The investigation is continuing.” The artists, who being advised by lawyers in the US and in Germany, said they didn’t want to speculate on the legal repercussions of their performance.
They also declined to explain exactly how the had managed to hoist the flags from the top of the bridge without being noticed by the authorities, but told the Guardian that they had stayed to watch the reaction in the area. “Everything was really peaceful,” said Leinkauf. “Life in the streets slowly awoke: people walked their dogs, the first tourists popped up, people made their way to work.“I asked a construction worker if I could set up my camera within a fenced area. She asked what I would be filming. ‘White American flags on Brooklyn Bridge,’ I answered. ‘Oh yeah,’ she said, ‘They’re training the novices how to raise the flags. This happens from time to time.’”Wermke said he had a similar experience: “While I was watching joggers taking pictures, a burly American with a cowboy hat approached me and said: ‘Did you see the white flags? Usually there are American flags up there, but now they’re white. Did Brooklyn surrender to Manhattan? I mean what else do white flags mean?’ ‘I don’t know,’ I answered. ‘White also means peace.’ He laughed and said: ‘Oh yes, New York surrendered and America is the most peaceful country in the world.’”“After a while reporters showed up, you saw cameras everywhere,” Leinkauf said. “Around 10.30am, when the first mobile units and helicopters showed up, followed by police, the atmosphere and also my mood changed. It added another meaning to the flags: the possibility of a threat.”“I remember many more reactions in the city in the days following,” Wermke said. “After we claimed responsibility these were personally directed at us for the first time. We got some angry emails, but mainly we got feedback we appreciated. There were some really touching statements by people who told us how the piece emotionally amazed them and how it will change their view on the city from now on.”Wermke and Leinkau first met when they lived on the same street in East Berlin as teenagers. Some critics have described their work as “post-graffiti” for its conscious use of public space. They also declined to explain exactly how they had managed to hoist the flags from the top of the bridge without being noticed by the authorities, but told the Guardian that they had stayed to watch the reaction in the area. “Everything was really peaceful,” said Leinkauf. “Life in the streets slowly awoke: people walked their dogs, the first tourists popped up, people made their way to work.“I asked a construction worker if I could set up my camera within a fenced area. She asked what I would be filming. ‘White American flags on Brooklyn Bridge,’ I answered. ‘Oh yeah,’ she said, ‘They’re training the novices how to raise the flags. This happens from time to time.’”Wermke said he had a similar experience: “While I was watching joggers taking pictures, a burly American with a cowboy hat approached me and said: ‘Did you see the white flags? Usually there are American flags up there, but now they’re white. Did Brooklyn surrender to Manhattan? I mean what else do white flags mean?’ ‘I don’t know,’ I answered. ‘White also means peace.’ He laughed and said: ‘Oh yes, New York surrendered and America is the most peaceful country in the world.’”“After a while reporters showed up, you saw cameras everywhere,” Leinkauf said. “Around 10.30am, when the first mobile units and helicopters showed up, followed by police, the atmosphere and also my mood changed. It added another meaning to the flags: the possibility of a threat.”“I remember many more reactions in the city in the days following,” Wermke said. “After we claimed responsibility these were personally directed at us for the first time. We got some angry emails, but mainly we got feedback we appreciated. There were some really touching statements by people who told us how the piece emotionally amazed them and how it will change their view on the city from now on.”Wermke and Leinkau first met when they lived on the same street in East Berlin as teenagers. Some critics have described their work as “post-graffiti” for its conscious use of public space.
Previous projects have involved the artists hanging or swinging off tall buildings or bridges, driving a homemade handcar through Berlin’s metro tunnels and scaling skyscrapers in Tokyo and Prague. The first that the public has seen most of these performances has been when films of the stunts were shown at art exhibitions.Wermke said he and Leinkauf had a similar run-in with the law in Tokyo. “The city had officially invited us to work there. We arrived just a couple of months after the disaster in Fukushima, and naturally the city was very sensitive about actions in public space.“In our work ‘Drifter’ we performed on the rooftops of the vertical city. When I unknowingly tried to climb the energy museum of Tepco, the company responsible for the catastrophe, both of us got arrested. This was a very delicate situation but due to the great support of the Tokyo Wonder Site residency we were released quickly and could continue our work and complete the piece.”Previous projects have involved the artists hanging or swinging off tall buildings or bridges, driving a homemade handcar through Berlin’s metro tunnels and scaling skyscrapers in Tokyo and Prague. The first that the public has seen most of these performances has been when films of the stunts were shown at art exhibitions.Wermke said he and Leinkauf had a similar run-in with the law in Tokyo. “The city had officially invited us to work there. We arrived just a couple of months after the disaster in Fukushima, and naturally the city was very sensitive about actions in public space.“In our work ‘Drifter’ we performed on the rooftops of the vertical city. When I unknowingly tried to climb the energy museum of Tepco, the company responsible for the catastrophe, both of us got arrested. This was a very delicate situation but due to the great support of the Tokyo Wonder Site residency we were released quickly and could continue our work and complete the piece.”
Unlike conventional hand-held street art videos, the two artists’ films aren’t shaky but calm, lending their films a poetic quality. In the New York Times article which revealed the pair as the artists behind the flags, the paper’s architecture critic Michael Kimmelman described their project as “playful, respectful, even poetic”.Yet a closer look at the artists’ back catalogue shows that most of their works have a strong political quality too. A video work from 2006 shows Wermke swimming across the river Spree outside the German parliament, at the precise spot a group of GDR refugees escaped across the border in 1988.Unlike conventional hand-held street art videos, the two artists’ films aren’t shaky but calm, lending their films a poetic quality. In the New York Times article which revealed the pair as the artists behind the flags, the paper’s architecture critic Michael Kimmelman described their project as “playful, respectful, even poetic”.Yet a closer look at the artists’ back catalogue shows that most of their works have a strong political quality too. A video work from 2006 shows Wermke swimming across the river Spree outside the German parliament, at the precise spot a group of GDR refugees escaped across the border in 1988.
As critic Bettina Klein has put it, Wermke and Leinkauf “repeatedly choose places and buildings that symbolise the existing political and economic balance of power”.In that context, reading the white American flags as a deliberate tactic to expose the paranoia of the US surveillance state doesn’t seem too far fetched.Asked if there was a political dimension to their projects, Leinkauf answered: “Is there any way not to be political for artists? I think you cannot deny that art is supposed to have a social function,whether it’s a painting or a performance.”“Ambiguity is a quality of a good piece, as it raises questions and fosters public dialogue,” Wermke said. “Others engage in being political. Every article on the piece, as well as every online comment – from ‘Now completely gluten-free’ to ‘They should be honoured’ to ‘These guys need to be taught the lesson of freedom with a trip to Gitmo’ – is a political statement by the recipients. We consider this very important.”As critic Bettina Klein has put it, Wermke and Leinkauf “repeatedly choose places and buildings that symbolise the existing political and economic balance of power”.In that context, reading the white American flags as a deliberate tactic to expose the paranoia of the US surveillance state doesn’t seem too far fetched.Asked if there was a political dimension to their projects, Leinkauf answered: “Is there any way not to be political for artists? I think you cannot deny that art is supposed to have a social function,whether it’s a painting or a performance.”“Ambiguity is a quality of a good piece, as it raises questions and fosters public dialogue,” Wermke said. “Others engage in being political. Every article on the piece, as well as every online comment – from ‘Now completely gluten-free’ to ‘They should be honoured’ to ‘These guys need to be taught the lesson of freedom with a trip to Gitmo’ – is a political statement by the recipients. We consider this very important.”
Additional reporting by Jessica Glenza in New YorkAdditional reporting by Jessica Glenza in New York