Le Mur Pour La Paix or The Wall For Peace
Le Mur Pour La Paix, basically translates to the Wall for Peace and this was a monument in Paris located within the Champ de Mars park close to the Eiffel Tower and visitors could submit their messages of peace.
About the Mur Pour La Paix
The Wall for Peace was initially thought of by the artist Clara Halter and inspired by the Wailing Wall in Jerusalem, it was designed in conjunction with the architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte to be a prominent symbol promoting world peace within the city of Paris.
Utilising multiple alphabets and a multitude of different languages all promoting peace, the structure itself is an imposing length of 16.4m, a width of 13.8m and a height of 9m. It has a metal framework covered in wood along with 32 stainless steel columns and a large amount of glass, that is designed to bring together elements that perceive pure space, balance, transparency and harmony.
Also Le Mur Pour La Paix has 30 monitors that are connected to the internet so that visitors can look at the world peace messages and even submit their own message of peace, and through the ideas of the artist and architect, this wall of Peace will take on its true meaning through its visitors. However, when we were there in 2013 we were unable to see any of these monitors.
And even though parts of the world are in still in turmoil and many thought that the idea of building a monument in Paris dedicated to peace was ridiculous, the city of Paris has always been known as a multi-cultural city and this special wall is testament to this.
But since this project was first unveiled, being inaugurated by the President of the French republic on 30th March 2000, other countries have also gone in favour of this idea and Clara Halter and Jean-Michel Wilmotte have produced a Peace Tower in Saint Petersburg, Russia and the Gates of Peace in Hiroshima, Japan.
Yet, the installation also had much criticism and was vandalised on numerous occasions, and eventually an agreement was made for the Wall of Peace installation to be taken down and moved to a different location.
This was followed by the widower of the artist Clara Halter confirming that a different permanent Wall for Peace structure would be placed within the city in memory of Clara, and it was proposed in agreement with the City of Paris to be installed on the Avenue de Breteuil by Les Invalides.
However, after the original Mur Pour La Paix within the Champ de Mars Gardens was taken down in 2020 to make way for a temporary building called the Grand Palais Ephemere, the residents along the Avenue de Breteuil created a petition to stop the erection of a new Wall for Peace. Eventually, in 2023 a judgement was declared and the building permit cancelled for the new installation, so currently there is no Wall for Peace in Paris.
Access to The Wall For Peace
Currently you cannot visit this monument in Paris, although it used to be located in the 7th Arrondissement within the Champ de Mars, at the opposite end of the garden to the Eiffel Tower, where so many people visit whilst they are on holiday in Paris, but you can still enjoy our pictures and photos pre 2020 and of course visit the Champ de Mars Gardens.
