A touring exhibition with a vision

Across Europe homelessness is a challenge all member states struggle with, and even though the challenges may differ according to country and population, there is a common need for raising awareness of homelessness and especially how to end homelessness.

The European touring exhibition Ending Homelesness is a campaign, which is raising awareness in a different way. By exhibiting 13 human-size sculptures that all portray homelessness, we want to make the lives and living conditions for the homeless people in Europe visible. There are many ways to become homelessness, and there are many ways to be homeless, and therefore each of the uniqe sculptures tell a story.

All the sculptures are made by the Danish artist Mr. Jens Galschiøt by request of projekt UDENFOR. They are all made in bronze and portray men and women, young people and old people, people with mental problems and people with an abuse. Many people seem to believe that homelessness is a man sleeping on a bench - and this is true in some cases along with all the other life stories of people becoming homeless. 

In the streets

During this autum, the 13 homeless sculptures will be placed in the streets in many European capital cities, where they will attract attention to the many problems and lack of help, which surround the homeless people in Europe. The sculptures will be placed outside in the streets and on squares to make the "homeless people" visible in places, where they normally spend most of their time. Hopefully bypassers will stop for a while to have a look at a "homeless person" and read his or her story. 

The exhibitions in the different European cities are hosted by national NGOs, and the essential part of being a host of the Ending Homelessness exhibition is to create awareness within the frames of the national challenges. The homeless-sculptures can increase the attention towards the specific problems, the work of the hosting NGO and how to strive for ending homelessness.

In April 2010 the Ending Homelessness exhibition was launched in the European Parliament in cooperation with several MEPs and the European organization FEANTSA. This was the kick-off for the exhibition, and since then the sculptures have been exhibited in five cities in Denmark and the exhibition has now begun its tour around Europe. First stop is Ireland, Dublin in November.

The touring schedule will be oploaded here as soon as possible.

Would you like to be the host of the exhibition in your country, or would you like further information? Please do not hesitate to contact us.

Ninna Hoegh
E-mail: nh@udenfor.dk
phone: 0045 53 60 20 27