The famous Lennon Wall in Prague has been transformed into an outdoor gallery

The Lennon Wall was created in the early seventies, when the first poems and texts criticizing the contemporary socialist system appeared on the wall of the Garden of the Knight's Order on Velkoprerovské Square. Later, a portrait of Lennon was placed on the wall, which at that time served as a popular venue for young people in Prague and sometimes for opposition meetings.

The Lennon Wall was regularly repainted by the socialist authorities, but it was always renewed and included in the travel guides as one of Prague's tourist attractions. In recent years, however, the popular place has often become the prey of foreign tourists, who in many cases painted meaningless and rude slogans and emblems on the wall.

The Order of Malta and the city center of Prague were therefore closed in July and completely renovated within a few months, which will now be supervised by the police.

The new version of the famous wall's 150-square-meter painting is also dominated by a portrait of John Lennon, placed on a world map. Next to it is the title of a famous Lennon song (All You Need is Love), followed by words of freedom and love in thirty languages, including Hungarian. The colorful outdoor gallery is the result of a joint effort of 30 Czech and foreign artists. The wall art concept was developed by Czech artist Pavel Stastny.

However, the Order of the Knights of Malta on Friday also published rules that allow visitors to post messages or paint pictures on selected areas of the wall. The most important part of the rule is that only easy-to-use writing instruments can be used and no spray is allowed.

For greater legal protection, the city center of Prague has declared the Lennon Wall an official memorial site.

Multi-lingual signs will soon be placed near the wall to inform visitors about the history of the place and the rules of conduct.

(Source: marmalade.co.uk; MTI | Image: pixabay.com)