Art and Essay Competition
November 9, 2014 marks the 25th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. We are inviting students from the Five College Consortium to join our WALL STORIES events, and to participate in our Art and Essay Competition.
The Berlin Wall was built in 1961 and it finally came down on November 9th, 1989. For almost three decades the Wall had divided not only Berlin but also East and West Germany, and East Germans from West Germans. The German unification in 1990 ended the existence of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), or East Germany.
Today, we can study the GDR and the fall of the Berlin Wall as part of Cold War history. We can also learn about it by engaging with art produced in East Germany that highlights various aspects of daily life in the GDR, the significance of the fall of the Wall, and its effects in the aftermath.
The UMass WALL STORIES events bring a variety of films to you and provide you with the opportunity to discuss them with the visiting filmmakers. We encourage all students from any discipline to join the competition and to ponder one or more of the following questions and topics in their writing or artwork:
· What does the Berlin Wall mean to different generations?
· Living life with walls, in the past and in the present
· The use of films and videos as historical witnesses
· Problematizing November 9 as a day of multiple commemorations
· The Wall as canvas
Essay Competition
· The submitted essays must be in English and in paragraph format—1,500 to 2,000 words.
· Students may only submit one essay per person.
· Essays should be e-mailed to Kerstin Mueller Dembling (KMD), [email protected]. Please submit your document as .doc, .pdf, scanned in graphic files (.jpg etc.), or .txt files only.
· Expect to receive acknowledgement of receipt. Please contact KMD if you do not receive a confirmation within a week.
· Each entry must include the writer’s name, the year, college affiliation, and an e-mail address. Each essay must be the sole work of the author.
· The Program in German and Scandinavian Studies (GSS) reserves the right to submit writing samples to the German Information Center (GIC) and they may appear in GIC associated publications or on our GSS website.
· Deadline for entry: November 19, 3:00pm.
Art Competition
· Students can use any media, and projects may include creative writing pieces, visual arts, videos, and websites.
· Students may only submit one art project per person.
· Contestants are asked to submit a brief proposal of their project to [email protected], in which they outline the scope and approximate proportions.
· Art projects should be movable to an exhibit space at Herter Hall. It is the responsibility of the contestants to bring the artwork to Herter Hall, to exhibit it in the 6th floor lobby for an exhibit on Dec. 4, and remove it after the final WALL STORIES event on Dec. 6.
· Each entry must include the artist’s name, the year, college affiliation, and an e-mail address. Each art project must be the sole work of the submitting student.
· GSS reserves the right to take photos or make recordings of the art projects, and they might appear in print or online publications associated with the GIC, and on our GSS website.
· Artwork should be brought initially to 519 Herter Hall.
· Deadline for entry: November 19, 3:00pm.
Prizes for both categories, Essay and Art Projects:
First prize (x2)
$100 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Second prize (x2)
$75 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Third prize (x2)
$50 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Winners will be selected by two juries comprised of faculty, scholars, and artists from the Five College Consortium, and the local community.
Prizes will be awarded on December 4, Herter Hall 601, at 4:00pm.
Art projects will be exhibited in the 6th floor lobby in Herter Hall that day.
Judging Guidelines
Successful Essay submissions
· Follow the guidelines
· Show that the student has done research on his/her subject
· Include the authors own conclusions
· Demonstrate critical and creative thinking
Successful Art Project submissions
· Follow the guidelines
· Show that the student has done research on his/her subject
· Avoid merely recreating already familiar imagery
· Create something new that demonstrates critical thinking
Any questions may be addressed to Kerstin Mueller Dembling, [email protected].
We are looking forward to your entries!
The Berlin Wall was built in 1961 and it finally came down on November 9th, 1989. For almost three decades the Wall had divided not only Berlin but also East and West Germany, and East Germans from West Germans. The German unification in 1990 ended the existence of the German Democratic Republic (GDR), or East Germany.
Today, we can study the GDR and the fall of the Berlin Wall as part of Cold War history. We can also learn about it by engaging with art produced in East Germany that highlights various aspects of daily life in the GDR, the significance of the fall of the Wall, and its effects in the aftermath.
The UMass WALL STORIES events bring a variety of films to you and provide you with the opportunity to discuss them with the visiting filmmakers. We encourage all students from any discipline to join the competition and to ponder one or more of the following questions and topics in their writing or artwork:
· What does the Berlin Wall mean to different generations?
· Living life with walls, in the past and in the present
· The use of films and videos as historical witnesses
· Problematizing November 9 as a day of multiple commemorations
· The Wall as canvas
Essay Competition
· The submitted essays must be in English and in paragraph format—1,500 to 2,000 words.
· Students may only submit one essay per person.
· Essays should be e-mailed to Kerstin Mueller Dembling (KMD), [email protected]. Please submit your document as .doc, .pdf, scanned in graphic files (.jpg etc.), or .txt files only.
· Expect to receive acknowledgement of receipt. Please contact KMD if you do not receive a confirmation within a week.
· Each entry must include the writer’s name, the year, college affiliation, and an e-mail address. Each essay must be the sole work of the author.
· The Program in German and Scandinavian Studies (GSS) reserves the right to submit writing samples to the German Information Center (GIC) and they may appear in GIC associated publications or on our GSS website.
· Deadline for entry: November 19, 3:00pm.
Art Competition
· Students can use any media, and projects may include creative writing pieces, visual arts, videos, and websites.
· Students may only submit one art project per person.
· Contestants are asked to submit a brief proposal of their project to [email protected], in which they outline the scope and approximate proportions.
· Art projects should be movable to an exhibit space at Herter Hall. It is the responsibility of the contestants to bring the artwork to Herter Hall, to exhibit it in the 6th floor lobby for an exhibit on Dec. 4, and remove it after the final WALL STORIES event on Dec. 6.
· Each entry must include the artist’s name, the year, college affiliation, and an e-mail address. Each art project must be the sole work of the submitting student.
· GSS reserves the right to take photos or make recordings of the art projects, and they might appear in print or online publications associated with the GIC, and on our GSS website.
· Artwork should be brought initially to 519 Herter Hall.
· Deadline for entry: November 19, 3:00pm.
Prizes for both categories, Essay and Art Projects:
First prize (x2)
$100 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Second prize (x2)
$75 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Third prize (x2)
$50 Northampton or Amherst gift card
Winners will be selected by two juries comprised of faculty, scholars, and artists from the Five College Consortium, and the local community.
Prizes will be awarded on December 4, Herter Hall 601, at 4:00pm.
Art projects will be exhibited in the 6th floor lobby in Herter Hall that day.
Judging Guidelines
Successful Essay submissions
· Follow the guidelines
· Show that the student has done research on his/her subject
· Include the authors own conclusions
· Demonstrate critical and creative thinking
Successful Art Project submissions
· Follow the guidelines
· Show that the student has done research on his/her subject
· Avoid merely recreating already familiar imagery
· Create something new that demonstrates critical thinking
Any questions may be addressed to Kerstin Mueller Dembling, [email protected].
We are looking forward to your entries!