Der Bevölkerung, Installation artwork in Reichstag building, Germany.
Der Bevölkerung is an artwork in the Reichstag featuring white neon letters spelling the title in a roughly 21 by 7 meter wooden trough. The glowing text points upward toward the glass dome, while the trough is filled with plants and soil contributed by members of parliament.
Artist Hans Haacke created this work in 2000 following a commission from the German parliament. It emerged during a period of intense discussion about national identity following the country's reunification.
Members of the Bundestag contribute soil from their home regions, which then grows naturally within the wooden frame. This ongoing practice transforms the work into a living representation of diversity from across the country.
You can view the installation from several levels of the Reichstag, including the main assembly hall and rooftop areas. Choose your vantage point depending on whether you prefer to see the neon text from below or from above.
The title deliberately contrasts with the older inscription 'DEM DEUTSCHEN VOLKE' on the building's exterior. Haacke chose this phrasing to express a different understanding of nation, one that emphasizes diversity rather than uniformity.
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