Gedenkort.Flucht

On 6 May 2022, the memorial site for people who died while fleeing was opened at the Linz/St. Martin city cemetery in Traun and blessed during a short multi-religious ceremony.

Gedenkort.Flucht was realised by the project group "Gedenkort Flucht" under the direction of the Diocese of Linz as a joint project of the Catholic Church in Upper Austria, the Evangelical Church A. B. in Upper Austria and the Islamic Religious Community of Upper Austria, the Cultural Directorate of the City of Linz and LINZ AG FRIEDHÖFE. The project was funded by the state of Upper Austria, the cities of Linz, Traun and Leonding, the Diocese of Linz, the Evangelical Church A. B. in Upper Austria and the Otto Mauer Fund.

The work of art, which was realised over a period of four years across religious and party boundaries, sees itself as a memorial, a place of mourning and a meeting place: "As a memorial for people who died while fleeing, as a place of mourning for the bereaved with the names of their deceased, as a meeting place where people can remember, celebrate and pray", says Dr Stefan Schlager, the project manager of "Gedenkort.Flucht" of the Diocese of Linz.

The newly opened memorial site was designed by Viennese artist Arye Wachsmuth. His project was chosen by a jury as the winning project in an invited competition with international participation. It incorporates the topography of the available space at a crossroads in the Linz/St. Martin city cemetery as a central design element in its concept and creates a "harbouring" space. The starting point is the shape of the tear, whose pictorial representation has a universality that transcends religions.

The materials - grey cement fibre boards and rust-brown Corten steel - stand for fragility and durability in their dialectic. The spatial arrangement allows for an intimate, contemplative moment of devotion and remembrance. In addition to the names of the deceased and missing, the memorial wall, which stands in the tradition of a "wall of lamentation", also features designations of family affiliation, such as mother, father, daughter and brother, in a corresponding language. This is intended to include people whose names are not known.