A new street and a work of public art in tribute to Václav Havel
As part of the official visit of the Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, the Václav Havel street was officially inaugurated in the Kirchberg district during a ceremony on Tuesday 13 December 2022 in the presence of Fernand Etgen, President of the Luxembourg Chamber of Deputies, Xavier Bettel, Prime Minister of Luxembourg, François Bausch, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Mobility and Public Works, Lydie Polfer, Mayor of the City of Luxembourg and Félicie Weycker, President of the Kirchberg Fund.
The new street is named after the former president of Czechoslovakia and then of the Czech Republic, whose famous 1996 speech in Aachen inspired the motto of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2022, adapted to the current situation: Europe as a mission.
At the entrance to the street, on the corner of Rue Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi, the interactive work by Czech artist Jiří David reminds us of the strong message of the former president who believed in the victory of truth and love over lies and hatred.
The work rests on two concrete panels, between which the materialized sound wave of Havel's voice recording resonates. The wave is made of plexiglass plates and completed with a light effect. By pressing a button, passers-by can listen to the recording.
Love and truth must triumph over lies and hate
"This legendary quote continues to carry not only a moral imperative, i.e., some form of recommendation or example of commitment, but represents, despite its seemingly utopian message, the essential human thought and desire. In my project I convert this sentence into a 3D phonetic graphic allowing me to metaphorically penetrate through impenetrable walls, symbolizing certain internal and external obstacles, incomprehension. This symbolic process of demolishing the walls of evil through the power of voice, the power of non-violence, the power of understanding, the power of community, thus carries with it the ethos of human freedom and responsibility of values. It is a message that guards our civilisation against all manifestations of hatred in the past, present and future," explains Jiří David.
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