In a city as saturated with eye-catching graffiti and stencils as Berlin, the smallest, least permanent form of street art – the sticker – is underrated, yet everywhere.
Oliver Baudach’s been devoted to the decal since age 13. “I bought a wallet that had a really cool skull logo on it, and inside the wallet there was an exact replica of that skull as a sticker. I didn’t want to put it anywhere – I just wanted to keep it safe.” It’s now on show at Hatch Sticker Museum, started by Baudach in 2008.
In March, the collection moved to a new location in Friedrichshain, where, the 42-year-old skateboard business veteran boasts, “you can see 4500 artworks” crammed into 80 square metres. The wall-to-wall stickers, divided into “street” and “commercial” categories, have been collected from or donated by artists and companies all over the world and include everything from Shephard Fairey’s Obey series to niche skateboarding logos.
On top of that, Baudach is planning guest exhibitions; for example, one with only political stickers. He even includes a limited edition sticker in the €2.50 entrance fee (€1.50 kids), in the hope that visitors will get as stuck on the art form as he is.
Originally published in issue #127, May 2014.
