Restoration of Karl Marx Mosaic Celebrates East German Heritage

A large mosaic depicting Karl Marx and commemorating the founding of East Germany and the “unity of the working class” was officially presented to the city of Halle by the private foundation that financed its restoration today.

Historical Background

Crafted by Josep Renau, the mural was completed in 1974 and adorns the external wall of the stairwell of an 11-floor residence for apprentices in Halle-Neustadt. This concrete new town, constructed near Halle during the Cold War, was intended to accommodate workers from nearby chemical plants. Since the Berlin Wall fell, Halle-Neustadt’s population has declined to around 45,000, about half its peak in the 1960s.

The mural, formally named The Unity of the Working Classes and Founding of the German Democratic Republic, stands 35 meters tall and seven meters wide and consists of 11,000 tiles. It's considered one of the most significant surviving public artworks from communist East Germany.

Changing Attitudes Toward East German Art

Over the last three decades, much East German public art has been lost, either destroyed, removed during reconstruction, or allowed to degrade. Often, such works are viewed as relics of a bygone ideology and not given significant art-historical merit. However, recent efforts to preserve these pieces indicate a shift in perception.

“Even uncomfortable East German cultural heritage shouldn’t just disappear—instead, it should be preserved to encourage reflection and debate,” states Philip Kurz, managing director of the Wüstenrot Foundation, which funded most of the €600,000 restoration. The Wüstenrot Foundation has concentrated on conserving East German public art as part of its heritage protection initiatives. In 2019, the foundation completed the restoration of another Renau mosaic in Erfurt, composed of 70,000 glass fragments.

Josep Renau: An Artistic Journey

Born in Valencia in 1907, Renau was pivotal in organizing the Spanish pavilion at the 1937 International Exhibition in Paris, where Picasso’s Guernica premiered. After Franco's victory in the Spanish Civil War, Renau fled to Mexico, where he interacted with prominent figures of Mexican muralism, such as David Alfaro Siqueiros, before moving to East Germany in 1958.

Renau's first mural in East Germany was in Halle-Neustadt. Initially, he proposed a nature-themed work, but the party enforced a political subject instead. The newly restored Marx mosaic was among two monumental works by Renau in the area; the other, The Youth’s March Into the Future, was located on a nearby canteen and was destroyed between 1998 and 1999.

The Restoration Process

By the time restoration began in 2022, many of the tiles had suffered damage or had loosened due to frost and pollution. The restoration, led by the Gustav van Treeck studio in Munich, included repairing tiles where possible and replacing 451 that were irreparable.

Conclusion

The revitalization of this mural represents a broader recognition of the importance of preserving cultural artifacts from East Germany. As attitudes shift, the beliefs and art from that era gain renewed respect, serving as tools for historical reflection and debate.