Bergen Gives Green Light to Scandinavia’s Largest Graffiti Work

After quite a bit of debate, the local authorities finally gave Bergen Kunsthall (Bergen Art Hall) permission to create what will be Scandinavian’s largest graffiti painting on its rear wall. Both the city’s police and Kunsthall’s neighbors Grieghallen and the Bergen Kunstmuseum protested against the project, because they feared it would lead to more illegal tagging.

The art project Kommando received the go-ahead to create a graffiti painting to cover the entirety of the almost 300-square-meter rear wall of Bergen Kunsthall. The local Building Department accepted the application, and the city has even kicked in NOK 30,000 to help support the project. Kommando representative Morten Kvamme is relieved. ''We’ve waited a long time for this, and we’re extremely happy that this part of the project is finished. Now we get to work with the knowledge that this will actually be allowed to happen''

The protests from Bergen Kunstmuseum and Grieghallen fell on deaf ears in the end. They had feared that the graffiti painting would lead to more illegal tagging in the area. Bergen Kunstmuseum board leader Borghild Lieng said that they aren’t certain yet whether or not they will appeal the decision. Grieghallen technical chief Arne Tormod Hansen said they are disappointed with the verdict, but they probably won’t take the case any further.

On August 26, should things go to plan, such well-known Norwegian graffiti artists (by those in the know, anyway) as Goal and Coderock will come to Bergen to decorate two-thirds of the wall, while the lower third of the wall will be open to anyone with a spray can. Strøm Erichsen hopes that such an initiative could actually lead to a decrease in illegal tagging,''I hope that people will have less interest in carrying out illegal graffiti specifically because this wall will be at the graffiti artists’ disposal. Here, all of those who have a wish to carry out the art form will have a possibility to do so.''