An Obelisk for Peace

It is known that for the duration of the Olympic Games in antiquity all military action was suspended and for a period of 12 weeks competitive sport prevailed and promoted a time of peace.

In 1896 the Olympic Games were re-established and took place again for the first time in Athens. At the time Europe looked back on an epoch devastated by numerous wars and an almost total redesigning of the territorial borders of nation-states. It was by no means a coincidence that these first games, initiated by Pierre de Courbin in 1894, should take place at the close of the 19th century; a time to present a symbolic and powerful message of peace to the 20th century. However, the 20th century suffered two world wars and the games in Berlin in 1936 were regarded by most more as a demonstration of power than of peace. Even after 1945 political action overshadowed the games, such as in Munich in 1972 where eleven were killed and many left wounded after an attack on Israeli athletes. Despite these serious attacks the Olympic Games have survived. Since 1992 the IOC and the UNO have jointly made efforts to maintain global peace for the duration of the Olympic Games. The return of the Olympic Games 2004 to Greece, their country of origin, is an affirmation of the Olympic Ideal.

A global event with a hundred-year tradition, such as the Olympic Games, has always given rise to artistic monuments and mementoes dedicated to the athletes in the locations where they performed. The Olympic Games 2004 in Greece will also be commemorated in art that will remind future generations of this historic event with its desire for peace.

Hella De Santarossa envisions a 9-meter high Glass Obelisk for a central location in Athens. This sculpture will be illuminated and visitors can enter. It will be a time symbol for global understanding. Containing the insignia of competing athletes, it will in one respect remind us of the material transience of the Olympic Games 2004, but the sculpture will also conserve what is apparently temporary for posterity.

Hella De Santarossa developed her aesthetic feeling for obelisks consciously through her understanding of glass as an artistic medium. Glass may not seem to be the material suitable for a project of such dimensions. However, her technical know-how when working with this fragile medium, together with her knowledge of the static requirements, always fascinate not only art connoisseurs and art lovers, but also engineers and architects.

In this way transparent sculptures are formed through the medium of glass which are not only timeless, but also tied to current events. Such duality can hardly be achieved through any other medium, but it is evident in the works of Hella De Santarossa in various cities. Her glass sculptures do not call on you to destroy, but to take your time and think about such important issues as peace and international understanding. This was the call of the IOC in Sydney in 2000 for all future Olympic Games: "Our goal is to make a contribution towards creating a spirit of peace in the world". An essential precondition for this is transparency - and nothing is more transparent than glass in the way that Hella De Santarossa artistically works and applies it.