My name is Philipp Krebs and I am a Swiss artist. For the last thirty years, I have developed and honed my passion for large-scale public art installations. My FlyingWalls team and I have been fortunate to realize these all around the world – in Berlin, Amsterdam, Madrid, Bern, Dresden and South Africa.
Generally speaking, my art projects consist of oversized flying balloons that are assembled into area-wide installations. My previous projects were powerful media magnets and attracted a broad audience.
Most recent Project: FlyingFreedoms
FlyingFreedoms is an art project with a message. The installation is an artistic interpretation of the Four Freedoms, as articulated by US President Franklin D Roosevelt, with the aim of reminding the free world of the importance and the value of these four freedoms. The installation uses large-scale balloons (300 pieces with a diameter of 10 feet each) and a colorful design to illustrate these freedoms. FlyingFreedoms will be erected in the Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms State Park on Roosevelt Island in New York, and integrated into the public education program of the Four Freedoms State Park Conservancy.
The Artist - Philipp Krebs
Son of a Polish mother and Swiss restaurateur father, public artist Philipp Krebs was born in Lima, Peru in 1961. The family returned to Switzerland in 1968. At age 25, Philipp entered the renowned Engineering College in Burgdorf, Switzerland. There he earned a degree in Architecture – a discipline that would eventually lead him into the world of public art.Philipp’s achievements include several highly-praised public art installation projects in seven countries.
Since 1989, Philipp has designed and exhibited many large-scale mixed media sculptures. The first two monumental public works, which were identified as “The Bridge Projects”, make visible the exuberant nature of the wind. The first of these projects was installed in Bern, Switzerland, in 1990, the second in Dresden, Germany, in 1991.
In the years thereafter, Philipp began to create art installations that did not need to be affixed to existing structures: instead, he used large heliumfilled balloons, which moved and danced in the wind in a similar way. The first of these new projects, fittingly called “FlyingWalls”, was erected between the Swiss Embassy and the German Federal Government Building (Bundeskanzleramt) in Berlin in celebration of Swiss National Day, August 2001.
From 1998 through 2004, the artist divided his time between Cape Town, South Africa and Bern, Switzerland. While residing in Cape Town, Philipp became very aware of the AIDS epidemic and its devastating effects on the population. In 2000, turning his artistic soul turned toward social consciousness, he thus installed – to high acclaim – the “Stop Aids! HIV/AIDS Awareness Project”.