Berlin Art@Site www.artatsite.com Hans Georg Damm Die Sieben Schwaben
Artist:

Hans Georg Damm

Title:

Die Sieben Schwaben

Year:
1978
Adress:
Hohenzollerndamm 181
Website:
www.tagesspiegel.de:
Ein knapp überlebensgroßes Werk aus Edelstahlblech, fünf Meter lang und mehr als zwei Meter hoch, eines der inoffiziellen Wahrzeichen des alten West-Berlin.
Ganz recht; die „Sieben Schwaben', nicht sehr helle, zudem äußert schreckhafte Gesellen, bekannt aus Grimms Kinder- und Hausmärchen – und in Berlin auch optisch vertraut durch die Skulptur auf dem Mittelstreifen des östlichen Fehrbelliner Platzes in Wilmersdorf.
Geschaffen hatte es 1978 der Bildhauer Hans-Georg Damm, der mit seinem Schwabenstreich zunächst Anstoß bei der Polizei erregte. Schließlich waren die Schwaben bewaffnet und zudem ebenerdig aufgestellt, bedrohten so mit ihrem Spieß besonders Motorradfahrer.
Doch als ihnen eigens ein Sockel gemauert wurde, waren auch die Ordnungshüter zufrieden. Nicht allerdings der Künstler: Für einen Ankauf fehlte dem Bezirk das Geld, drei Jahre ging es daher hin und her, bis Mercedes-Benz in Stuttgart Interesse bekundete und die „Sieben Schwaben' fast in ihre Heimat verschwunden wären.
Translation:
Just great work from stainless steel sheet to survive, five meters long and more than two meters high, one of the unofficial symbol of the old West Berlin. Quite right; the "Seven Swabians", not very bright, also terrible, extremely hearty fellows, known from the brothers Grimm children's and household tales, and in Berlin visually familiar by the sculpture on the median strip of the Eastern Fehrbelliner Platz in Berlin Wilmersdorf.
Created in 1978, the sculptor Hans-Georg Damm, caught with his Swabia string first impetus to the police. Finally, the Swabians were armed and also on the ground floor set up, threatened with her spit, especially motorcycle riders.
However, as you have been specifically built with bricks, a Base, were also the guardians of the law are satisfied. Not, however, the artist: For a purchase lacked the money to the district for three years, it is therefore went back and forth until Mercedes-Benz expressed in Stuttgart interest and the "Seven Swabians", which had almost disappeared in their home.

www.wikipedia.org:
In 1978 a monument was created on the Fehrbelliner Platz in Berlin-Wilmersdorf, sculpted by Hans-Georg Damm.
n 1545 the story was adapted into song by Hans Sachs. In 1887 Karl Millöcker adapted the story into an operette.
The Seven Swabians (Die Sieben Schwaben) is a German fairy tale, collected by The Brothers Grimm in the second volume edition of their Kinder- und Hausmärchen (1857) under the number KHM119. The term Swabians refers to people from the German region Swabia, though in Switzerland it refers to Germans in general.
Once upon a time there were Seven Swabians who travelled through the world. To be safe from danger they carried one long spear with them. One day in July they walk through a meadow just by nightfall and notice a hornet buzzing by. Unaware what they just heard the men start to panic, thinking it was a war drum. One of them tries to flee, jumps over a fence and then walks right on the teeth of a rake, whereupon the handle hits him in the face. He quickly begs for mercy and tells the invisible attacker that he'll surrender, whereupon his six friends do the same. Later, when they finally understand they were fooled they decide to keep this embarrassing anecdote a secret. To prevent the story from getting out they swear to not say anything about it until one of them should accidentally open his mouth.
Later they encounter a hare sleeping in the sun. They take the animal for a monster and decide to attack it. After bracing themselves with all the courage they can get they strike out and the hare runs away, whereupon they realize they've once again been fooled.
The septet travels onward until they reach the river Moselle. Unaware how to cross it they ask a man on the opposite side of the river for help. Due to the distance and their language the man doesn't understand what they were saying and he asked them in the dialect of Trier: "Wat, Wat?" This causes the men to think that they have to wade through the water. As the first Swabian gets into the river he starts to sink into the mud. His hat is blown away to the opposite shore, next to a frog who croaks noises that sound like "wat, wat, wat". The six surviving Swabians think it's their friend telling them to wade across; they rush in the water and all drown.

www.meinberlin-erleben.de:
Die schreckhaften Gesellen, bekannt aus Grimms Märchen, tölpelhaft und nicht gerade schlau, symbolisieren sieben Charaktereigenschaften des Menschen. Der Künstler hat sie überlebensgroß in Edelstahlblech gehauen. Fünf Meter lang und mehr als zwei Meter hoch, ist es seit über 30 Jahren ein inoffizielles Wahrzeichen des alten West-Berlin.
Der Schwabenstreich hatte zunächst Anstoß bei der Polizei erregt. Schließlich waren die Schwaben bewaffnet und zudem ebenerdig aufgestellt, bedrohten so mit ihrem Spieß besonders Motorradfahrer. Doch als ihnen eigens ein Sockel gemauert wurde, waren auch die Ordnungshüter zufrieden.
Quelle: Wikipepedia.