Art can be incorporated into many aspects of our lives

In 1960, the East Berlin Traffic Commission invited Karl Peglau, a Traffic Psychologist, to design new vehicle and pedestrian traffic lights to help improve the safety of increasingly-used roadways. Karl’s accepted design was very popular amongst locals and became a part of East German popular culture. Known locally as the ‘Ampelmännchen’ (Ampelmann), the pedestrian figures were fuller, wore hats, and Peglau himself described them as having “an aura of human warmth”. 

After the German reunification in 1990, authorities began to gradually phase out Peglau’s iconic symbol in favour of standardizing traffic lights with the versions used in former West Germany. During this time a German designer, Markus Heckhausem, began to collect the displaced pedestrian traffic symbols and converted them into accessories. Proving to be very popular amongst Ampelmann enthusiasts, a campaign was launched to preserve the symbol. 

Over twenty years has passed since the Ampelmann was preserved, and it is as popular today amongst residents and visitors. Markus has helped to create a well-respected design company that focuses on Ampelmann-related products, and they have recently opened a restaurant in Berlin to support their business model. 

In late 2011, I invited the Berlin-based company to design a Bermuda-specific version of their popular character. Excited about the opportunity to partner with Bermuda, they designed a figure wearing Bermuda shorts that somewhat resembled a Cricket umpire calling a ‘wide ball’. Adopting these new pedestrian crossing symbols would have simply   replacing the circular glass lenses.

Despite efforts to propose this concept to two different Corporation of Hamilton administrations, the Ampelmann-Bermuda project failed to launch. A decision had already been made to purchase and incorporate the same-side pedestrian (Puffin) system in order to assist the visually-impaired, however its design may not complement Hamilton as well as the older lighting system. A balance could have been made between what is practical but also aesthetically appeasing. 

In the future, it is encouraged that art and design become a vital criterion for authorities to consider when making decisions that alter our physical environment. Subtle yet impactful enhancements can be made to our pedestrian atmosphere that not only brightens spaces, but also the moods of individuals. It is with this attitude that Karl Peglau created the Ampelmann, and it is with this attitude that we will improve our future built environments.

Tiago Garcia lobbies for local public art and building-exterior enhancement projects.