Ideas competition for a memorial to the persecution of homeless people under the Nazi dictatorship

Ideas competition to obtain an artistic design for the creation of a memorial to the persecution of homeless people under the Nazi dictatorship

The aim of the competition is a design for a memorial site for the group of homeless victims of the Nazi dictatorship, which includes a free-standing sculpture or group of sculptures as well as seating objects, space for informative texts and (optionally) a floor design. The aim is to create a place of silent remembrance, but also of exchange.

The association Armut und Gesundheit Deutschland e.V. (Poverty and Health Germany) has set itself the goal of commemorating the persecution of a victim group that has so far hardly been represented in nationwide commemorative work with a work of art in the public space of the city of Mainz: the homeless people who were defamed, persecuted, expelled, interned or murdered by the Nazi dictatorship as so-called “asocials”. This group of victims was not officially recognized by the German Bundestag until 2020.
The members of this group of victims and their descendants faced double discrimination: After the suffering they endured under Nazi rule, they were unable to achieve recognition or compensation even in the decades following its end, and instead often experienced further marginalization. It is only in recent years that this complex of issues has been researched more intensively and dealt with in traveling exhibitions, for example.
The artwork awarded here is one of the first artistic installations in public space on this topic in Germany

  • Application for participation in the one-stage ideas competition by Friday, August 30 (receipt of e-mail or
  • Date of postmark), 12 noon
  • Jury meeting expected in September 2024
  • Collection of the submitted works up to one month after the jury meeting
  • Implementation By arrangement; from fall 2024 at the earliest

Application deadline: August 30, 2024