Works of 50 Artists Displayed on Balconies in Berlin

A beautiful art installation displayed on an artist's balcony was part of the Balconies, Life, Art, Pandemic, and Proximity exhibition last week in Berlin. Photos: JOHN MACGOUGALL/AFP
A beautiful art installation displayed on an artist's balcony was part of the Balconies, Life, Art, Pandemic, and Proximity exhibition last week in Berlin. Photos: JOHN MACGOUGALL/AFP
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Works of 50 Artists Displayed on Balconies in Berlin

A beautiful art installation displayed on an artist's balcony was part of the Balconies, Life, Art, Pandemic, and Proximity exhibition last week in Berlin. Photos: JOHN MACGOUGALL/AFP
A beautiful art installation displayed on an artist's balcony was part of the Balconies, Life, Art, Pandemic, and Proximity exhibition last week in Berlin. Photos: JOHN MACGOUGALL/AFP

After the closure of Berlin's art galleries over the COVID-19 pandemic, around 50 artists exhibited their works on balconies, calling the audience for an "intimate visit" to enjoy their creations.

"At a time when our freedom of movement is suspended, balconies have become unique performance sites," said the organizers who launched the project in the Prenzlauer Berg district of east Berlin.

The project's curators Ovul Durmusoglu and Joanna Warsza, who called the artists to unleash their imagination, said: "Balconies are for getting a breath of fresh air, spending some time in the sun or smoking."

The curious walkers in Berlin, where the rules of isolation in the face of the coronavirus pandemic are less strict than elsewhere in Germany, are invited to raise their heads and admire the artworks.

One artist displayed black and white photographs of people on their balconies in Athens and Cordoba, while another hung a ladder made from tree branches.

Other installation presents ribbons of toilet paper cascading down a building's facade, a reference to Germans' rush to stock up on the must-have commodity as soon as the coronavirus pandemic arrived in Europe.

The project with "zero budget, no preview, no crowds" aims to provide "an intimate walk in search of signs of life and art", the organizers said.



Missing Dog Returned to Family Home and Rang the Doorbell

Athena, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Husky mix, escaped her home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, on Dec. 15 - The AP
Athena, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Husky mix, escaped her home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, on Dec. 15 - The AP
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Missing Dog Returned to Family Home and Rang the Doorbell

Athena, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Husky mix, escaped her home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, on Dec. 15 - The AP
Athena, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Husky mix, escaped her home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, on Dec. 15 - The AP

After a nearly weeklong search, Athena found her way home to her Florida family in time for Christmas Eve and even rang the doorbell.

Athena, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Husky mix, escaped her home in Green Cove Springs, Florida, on Dec. 15, prompting a search among the community and nearby towns for her. Her owner, Brooke Comer, said her family left for church that day and got a message from her neighbor with a picture of Athena outside the house.

Comer panicked. Her family rushed home to find her collar in the crate and no visible opening Athena could have gotten out from. How she escaped remains a mystery.

The next week's events continued to be an “unbelievable” story for Comer, where neighbors and community members from nearby towns would contact her from her missing dog ads and send any footage or photos where they may have spotted Athena. Based on all the alerts Comer got, it looked like Athena made a nearly 20-mile (32-kilometer) roundtrip while she was missing.

At every alert, Comer and her family would go to the spot within minutes and search for Athena — to no avail, according to The AP.

“She was the hide-and-seek all time grand champion,” Comer said. “With every sighting my heart jumped, and it honestly was excitement and then your heart's crushed because we were always one step behind.”

The entire search was a terrifying and scary experience for Comer, who was worried about where her already skittish dog could have gone or could have encountered. That was until 2:30 a.m. Christmas Eve, when she got a Ring video notification from her doorbell and her other dog began barking.

“I was kind of like in a daze, and the dog was barking, and as soon as I heard that ring, I looked at my phone and you could see in the video it was Athena and she was jumping at the door, ringing the doorbell,” Comer said.

As soon as Comer opened the door, Athena bolted inside and went to go lick her son's face, who was on the couch half-asleep. After that, she immediately grabbed her ball to play and shortly went to her cage to go back to sleep.

Comer said the experience gave so much hope because of the neighbors and the large community looking for Athena for the past week. The next plan was to get Athena a full exam, flea and tick treatments and a microchip.