Berlin Kidz is an artists collective from Kreuzberg, Berlin participating in graffiti, train surfing, and parkour. They are considered one of the most influential graffiti crews in Berlin known both for their trademark graffiti lettering and the pichação inspired style of their artwork. The group typically utilise the colours red and blue as symbols of blood and freedom respectively.[1] In an interview they have stated that the motivation for their artwork is to highlight social issues and bring them to the attention of the public, using political slogans such as 'Hartz IV Eats the Soul' (Hartz IV essen Seele auf oder) or ‘Modern Slavery’ (Moderne Sklaverei). The collective deliberately target difficult to access and tall buildings in order to be as visible as possible. Aside from graffiti Berlin Kidz have filmed themselves on numerous occasions whilst train surfing on Berlin S-Bahn and U-Bahn rolling stock.[2]
In 2017, Berlin Kidz collaborated with the Urban Nation museum as part of their One Wall project.[3] The following year the group partiticapated in the Bügelfeuer exhibition of railway culture hosted at Güterbahnhofs Bremen, a disused freight yard located directly next to Bremen Hauptbahnhof, alongside other artists including Bill Daniel and MOSES & TAPS™.[4]
Media
After following the group during numerous actions over a four year period[5] the German photographer Thomas von Wittich exhibited his documentary images of the Berlin Kidz at an exhibition titled Adrenaline as part of the European Month of Photography in 2016.[6] In 2017, the documentary Grifters Code 6: Über Freaks, focusing on the illegal activities of the Berlin Kidz collective was released.[7]
To date Berlin Kidz have produced two of their own graffiti movies including the 2014 film Berlin Kidz – 100% Pure Adrenaline[8] and an hour long documentary Fuck the System.[9] They have also released short recordings of their artistic practice such as the 2018 promotional video Change your Frequency.[10]
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