Project "SCHMELZ" by STICK and SPIKE

Luxemburg is a small European country that often goes about doing its thing quietly. However, for anyone not aware, there are often great, inspiring, and creative events that happen there that are far from quiet. One of these thought-provoking events was the innovative and unique project “SCHMELZ”, by SPIKE and STICK. SPIKE and STICK have been making art in Luxemburg in the same crew since the ’90s. With a creative history that has seen them empty countless Montana BLACK and Montana GOLD cans together, 2019 saw them take on one of their biggest projects ever, “SCHMELZ”.

Looking at art from a different perspective in Luxemburg

The word Schmelz means smelt, and what better place to investigate such a word than at the old steelworks in Esch-Schifflange. The site that is no longer operational and earmarked for residential development was the ultimate 62ha playground for the two artists.

SCHMELZ is made up of three elements. Onsite murals as large as 12m high which were the biggest SPIKE and STICK had ever worked on. An exhibition of artworks exhibited in the space, and a film documenting both the process and result. Restricting themselves to a palette of only black, white, red, blue, and yellow, the duo focused on creating artworks that respected the architecture of the site while providing features that would also be later featured in the exhibition of artwork. A grand challenge in what was one of the last operating steelworks located in Grand Duch, SPIKE, and STICK rose to the challenge with some amazing site-specific artwork that is luckily recorded on film and image in a space that is certainly not going to last forever. Take a journey through “SCHMELZ” here.