Amore >>> Business – destigmatizing Berlins sticker culture

Amore over Business, originally “Amore ist wichtiger als Business”, is a commentary on the mainstream perception on street arts cultural value and its stigmatised connotation as vandalism.

“Urban art isn’t as present as it once was. And even in Berlin, the subject vanished from being the city’s flagship. In my eyes, Berlin is ultimately developing just like every other big city. All subcultures must disappear. Capitalism wins.” (Oliver Baudach, 2026: personal interview)

Conversation covers our cities. Passive anonymous interaction stuck to walls, lampposts, doors, traffic signs, electrical cabinets and even laptops. It creates, alters and diminishes safe spaces all around our cityscapes. Still the mainstream perception shaped by authorities connotes this form of creative expression as vandalism. In Germany, where this project is positioned the application of street art in the urban space is defined to be a conduct of criminal damage following section 303 of the German criminal code.

Street art has been essential to Berlins identity for decades, yet initiatives surrounding the subject remain fundamentally unacknowledged. One of them being the berlin-based sticker museum “Hatch Kingdom” founded by Oliver Baudach. Even with the museum 18 year of persistence and Olivers collection exceeding the 30.000 sticker the initiative is refused the recognition as a legitimate part of the city’s flagship and remains excluded from all sorts of cultural funding due to alleged cultural insignificance.

In collaboration with Oliver Baudach this project was created as a commentary on the present contradiction: sticker culture being classified culturally insignificant in a city that thrives of its vibrancy.

Using an alternative magazine this project explores how sticker cultures visual depiction might be used to question assigned cultural value and shift the perception on claimed urban space. It aims to destigmatize the conventional perception of sticker culture as vandalism and encourages the reflection upon one’s own fixed opinion, hopefully inspiring a re-evaluation of said beliefs.

The projects critical voice is found in between the lines. Documenting sticker culture primarily using a portable scanner this project acts as a commentary on institutional legitimacy, using a method considered the standard of digital preservation on a subject mostly dismissed as unworthy of archival.

Using the practice of “Fukurotoji” binding the folds of every spread lay on the outside edge of the pages, concealing section 303 of the German criminal code inside every spread. Whilst the legal framework is foundational for sticker cultures existence, it’s not necessarily defining its limits.

In aim to make this publication as “Berlin” as possible all content, typefaces and stickers were sourced from Berlin.

Reference

Baudach, O. (2026) Personal interview with the author, 4 April.