The Tresor Foundation announces its upcoming installation CLAIM FOR PEACE featuring the works of Parisian artist Kajika Aki. The artworks, which will be exhibited on the Tresor MegaFence from 19 December 2024 to 5 January 2025, will transform a 90-metre-long industrial building into a canvas that embodies the spirit of ‘art in construction’ and creates a dialogue between art, community and urban regeneration.
Image above: Tresor MegaFence. Courtesy: Tresor Foundation.
The MegaFence in the historically evolved Köpenicker Straße is more than just an exhibition space – it is a reclaimed space for artistic expression that builds a bridge between the past and the future of the neighbourhood. The changing landscape of the street, which currently faces a major construction site, finds resonance in the themes of destruction, renewal and the transformative power of art. This initiative reflects Tresor’s commitment to revitalising spaces and supporting public art as an essential element of urban culture.
The MegaFence, managed by the Tresor Foundation, has become a platform for contemporary art that strengthens the direct connection between the institution and its neighbourhood, incorporating various public spaces and providing a platform for emerging talents. By hosting CLAIM FOR PEACE, the foundation continues its mission to make artistic voices and cross-cultural dialogues heard while spotlighting young talents like Kajika Aki. Her works explore cycles of destruction and rebirth and reflect Berlin’s own history of reinvention. The installation addresses themes of urban regeneration, cultural dialogue and the human condition by transforming an industrial fence into a space for art, inviting viewers to reflect on the potential of public spaces as platforms for social and cultural expression.
Kajika Aki was born in Paris in 1993. After graduating from the Métiers d’Arts et du Design programme at the École Estienne in 2016, she began a master’s degree in CRFA (conception and production of animated films) at the École des Gobelins. In 2017, however, she decided to leave the programme to focus on her solo project MOM, an animated short film produced in just one year. This very personal work won the Best Film Award at the Tbilisi International Animation Festival (2021), received special mentions at the Future Film Festival (Italy) and Anima – Best of Shorts (Belgium) and was included in the official selection of the Annecy International Film Festival (2021).
In 2019 and 2020, she created The life and the death of the little mermaid and IMIEAMORI, two 1.5 x 10 metre painterly works created entirely on paper with ink and watercolours without prior sketches. Drawing without prior sketches is a way for Kajika not to think about a subject, but to be guided by the process of creation. Through her two works, she tells the story of her body, her intimacy, her pain, her traumas and her development. The works were exhibited by Lionel Bensemoun from 16 March 2022 to 16 May 2022 at La Folie Barbizon. Kajika lives and works in Paris. Under the title CLAIM FOR PEACE, her two works will now be shown at MegaFence at Tresor Berlin from 19 December 2024 to 5 January 2025.
‘I’m honoured to have my work featured on such an iconic Berlin Wall, especially during the New Year period: Berlin is a city of development and change, and that’s what the start of a new year represents. Development often comes with pain, but if you are brave and honest with yourself, it is easier. This is the story of my frescoes; I wish everyone the courage and vulnerability to blossom in a sky full of flowers of joy,’ said artist Kajika Aki.
‘I love how our huge 90 metre long billboard transforms into a ‘Wild Gallery’ – open to all, anytime and completely free. It’s a source of inspiration for the city and a springboard for young artists,’ says Dimitri Hegemann, cultural practitioner, space researcher and founder of Tresor.
The presentation, at which the artist Kajika Aki and Dimitri Hegemann will talk about the project, will take place on 19 December at 3 pm. This will be followed by a public party in the OHM at 4 pm.
WHEN?
Exhibition dates: Thursday, 19 December 2024 – Sunday, 5 January 2025
Presentation: Thursday, 19 December 2024, 3 pm
After Party: Thursday, 19 December 2024, 4 pm, OHM Club
WHERE?
Tresor Foundation Berlin
Köpenicker Strasse 70
10179 Berlin
