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Keith Haring’s Berlin Wall mural

22 octobre 2026 · 10 min

Notes de l’épisode

American artist Keith Haring became extremely successful and popular in the 1980s for his mix of graffiti and pop art-style work.

In 1986, he was invited to paint a mural on the Berlin Wall by the director of the Wall Museum at Checkpoint Charlie, Dr Rainer Hildebrandt.

The mural spanned 300 metres and incorporated the three colours of the German flag. Keith Haring said he wanted the mural to be a sign of unity for people on both sides of the wall.

Dr Hildebrandt’s wife, Alexandra, has been telling Tim O’Callaghan about her memories of Keith’s visit to Berlin.

Witness History is a short BBC World Service podcast about history that takes you inside big moments from the past through first-hand testimony and archive. Each weekday, in around nine minutes, we revisit one moment that helped shape the world and hear it through the voice of someone who was there. Scientists, artists, campaigners, soldiers, leaders and everyday people tell their true stories.

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(Photo: Keith Haring painting his mural on the Berlin Wall in 1986. Credit: Patrick Piel/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images)

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