Anote: Theflower streetin Krefeld, Luisa Estrada used a long piece of the facade as a model for her "black and white" design. If you take a look at the corner of Blumenstrasse and Moerser Strasse on Google, you can easily see their exact position.

With the silk weavers who worked on their looms in the houses there, she not only creates the connection to the velvet and silk city of Krefeld, but also directly to the silk weaver house.

​

Short interview Luisa Estrada

Luisa: "Hello Kerstin, thank you for your interest in my work in Krefeld. I'm happy to answer any questions you have about my painting."

​

I would like to know why you chose the flower street.

Luisa: "II was looking for something characteristic of the city, although I don't know Krefeld, I like to work with what I perceive as typical for the respective location from my own perspective. In the cities there are always very typical things, for example in the architecture. This can vary greatly in different countries. Different colors and architectural styles show typical country features. In addition, the individual functionalities are important for the cities. The creativity of the inhabitants of these cities is also reflected there. In this case, while checking Google Maps, I found the Flower Street attractive and interesting and decided to depict it. In the end it stops being that place and the painting becomes a reflection of the city itself, it's decor, a reflection of those who live there."

Annotation:This intention surprised me a little. Luisa easily transports a "simple" streetscape into an interesting, decorative work of art and encourages me, as a newcomer to Krefeld, to delve into the history of the city of Krefeld once more.

​

Did you choose the location for the photo yourself?

Luisa: "Yes, I found this position suitable for my project."

​

Could you get to know Krefeld a little better?n?

Luisa: Not really, just the route that took us from the hotel to the building where we painted. I was looking forward to visiting the Josep Beuys Museum.

​

I like to ask the artists about anecdotes, mishaps, special moments and sometimes what color they paint/spray with.

Luisa:Perfect. When you attend events where multiple people work together, everything is an anecdote, every moment becomes relevant and part of that story. At the beginning, when everything starts, you gradually approach others with great curiosity to know who they are and what they do. For me it was the first time I used scissors or a crane. I was a bit nervous but luckily everything went well and I enjoy using this machine.

In general, I really enjoyed painting and I was satisfied with the result. I have only painted walls very few times before, so it was a special experience for me to be invited to this event. I used a range of shades of gray for my rendering. I usually work like this when engraving, so I reduced the landscape, which actually had purple colors, to this area.

​

If I understand your answer correctly, your picture has no direct relation to Beuys, does it?

Luisa: The picture has something to do with Beuys, maybe a little more far-fetched. I rely on Beuys' statement that anyone can make art. With his social sculpture, he also said that art is a possible tool of social transformation. Under these two premises, I think it is possible and interesting to be able to see your city, your street, your house from a different point of view and/or from a different perspective.

In this case from the perspective of the foreigner and from above. Everything is possible, something new, different and maybe even beautiful. So we not only see the same old Krefeld, but the creativity of those who build is in it. Those who inhabit these peculiar and original spaces, the result of an artistic construction. A construction that has formed over time. If we go further and think of a distant future where we may not be anymore but there will still be some ruins, we will see all of this as a reminder of past lives and it will be that the architecture or remains of it at the the end is art."

​

I really like your style in black and white. Someone said you always paint like this. What made you do it? 

Luisa: "Well, I'm not a real painter. I am an engraver. I engrave on linoleum, foamed PVC, metal etc. . I have painted in public spaces other times, but more than painting, I have made large-scale drawings. I can say that I really painted for the first time in Krefeld. Since I was able to work through the topic in shades of gray that were easily accessible to me, I really enjoyed this exercise."

​

Annotation:I liked this idiosyncratic, classic depiction of the flower street right from the start, when the first outlines were sketched. The black and white representation is so different from the other partially colorful representations. It is amazing and remarkable that the artist does not necessarily come from the street art direction. She gives us Krefeld a piece of Krefeld as art and gives the viewer the freedom to associate this picture with Beuys or simply find it beautiful.

​

Is there a title for your picture?

Luisa: "Not really. It could mean "black and white flower street".

Source: Luisa  Estrada personally

​

Annotation:Finally, a little bit of history about the Blumenstraße in Krefeld.

There are probably no reliable findings as to where the flower street got its name from. It is believed that the name refers to the gardens outside the then city walls

relates. The street has existed since July 18, 1837.

There were several houses with in-house weavers on Blumenstrasse. The importance of home weaving was last seen at the time of the Franco-Prussian War. Poorer weavers from the area moved to Krefeld and urgently needed cheap housing. Among other things, 40 blocks of houses were built on Blumenstrasse between the West Wall and the Ringstrasse. Behind the elaborately decorated facades of the so-called three- or four-window houses were small, open apartments without water and sanitary facilities. 5-9 families are said to have lived so cramped in these houses. Since the weavers needed good light, the looms were placed by the windows. 

At the beginning of the 19th century, with the advancing industrialization, the importance of home weavers decreased rapidly. A steel mill was built in front of the town and a port was built. Krefeld became an industrial city.

A little of the former charm of the Blumenstraße has been preserved in a few listed buildings.

Source: WAZ 16.11.2012. Thanks to Wolfgang R. Krefeld for his support in researching Blumenstrasse