On the trail of Zurich's sprayer: the perfect audio guide for children and families

"Hi, I'm Elin and I'm eleven years old. I've been studying Harald Naegeli for six months and I thought he was really cool. That's why I've prepared a tour for you. I'm going to introduce you to my favorite characters!"
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So begins the walk of eleven-year-old Elin, who has created her own audio guide to the famous Zurich sprayer.

Thanks to the "School in the Museum" project, the two fourth-graders Elin and Helena were able to create a graffiti tour through Zurich. But what exactly does that mean? Pupils visit the Musée Visionnaire once a week for six months for an intensive exploration of art and the museum. Elin and Helena were particularly fascinated by the work of Harald Naegeli. As well as working on their own initiative, the young art detectives were supported by two professionals: Anna-Barbara Neumann, the managing director of the Harald Naegeli Foundation and the artist's closest collaborator, and Manuela Hitz from the Musée Visionnaire accompanied the project.

Elin has recorded her own audio guide. The tour is now very popular and has been advertised on various channels. From the Tagesanzeiger to Ron Orp, the Kinder-Kultur-Kalender(kikuka) and many other sites have already reported on the free audio guide for families. The usage statistics also prove that the offer is a great success.

This example shows once again that audio guides need to be simple - both for those who create the guide and for the listeners who use it. This allows you to convey exciting stories and focus on storytelling. In total, there are already 5 audio guides about Harald Naegeli's work - for adults and children.

We are happy to receive any contribution to encourage children and students to engage with history, science and culture, as well as to develop their media skills and curiosity. That is why we support school classes and university programs with a free audio guide, for example.

But you may be wondering: who is this ominous sprayer anyway? The fascinating story begins in the 1970s. Back then, the "Sprayer of Zurich" caused a stir for the first time. Graffiti appeared in Zurich overnight. In the years that followed, a myth grew up around the unknown artist, whose works were mainly seen as vandalism at the time. Hundreds of reports of damage to property and a bounty were declared. In 1979, Harald Naegeli was caught red-handed and arrested for the first time. In the years that followed, he traveled and worked in various places. In June 1981, he was sentenced in Zurich to nine months in prison and high fines for repeated damage to property. Even though Naegeli was able to evade arrest for the time being: He becomes an international wanted man. In 1983, Harald Naegeli finally gets caught in a passport check and is discovered. He was extradited to Switzerland in 1984. After his prison sentence, he left Switzerland and spent the following years in Düsseldorf. The diversity of graffiti in Zurich and Düsseldorf can be traced on an online platform and by means of various audio guides.

Naegeli continues to draw and create new works to this day. For an overview, please refer to the Harald Naegeli Foundation. The biography certainly provides material for more than one documentary: the film "Harald Naegeli - Der Sprayer von Zürich" provides a great introduction for anyone who wants to find out more about the background.

This example shows how young schoolgirls can discover the history of contemporary art for themselves - and how the general public can benefit from this. We are also delighted that Elin and Helena are now also offering a physical platform: The target group is children between the ages of eight and twelve.