The exhibition “Life Rings” at the Abtei St.Hildegard in Rüdesheim came to a close with a vesper service led by Sister Christophera and parish assistant Sebastian Braun. Many guests came, among them collectors wishing to acquire the works. At the end of that vesper a man approached me. As I later discovered, it was Pfarrer Marcus Fischer. He invited me to exhibit in the series Soulfood-Nourishment for the Soul in 2021 at the Rheingauer Dom. I was taken aback. Only shortly before, I had had to postpone an exhibition in Erfurt to 2022 because of the Corona pandemic.
Pfarrer Fischer assured me that the cathedral would not be closed. We spoke of how important it was, in times like these, to offer people “nourishment for the soul.” The next morning I drove with my photographer friends, a married couple, to Geisenheim, to at least see the cathedral before I set off home. It was filled with moving ancient art and an imposing high altar.
In the weeks that followed I turned over various possibilities for an exhibition in my mind. One thing was clear: pictures would have to hang from the galleries in dimensions I had not yet worked with. The works would need to be light, and could not sit behind glass.
With my friend Holger Vonderlind I visited a number of print shops in Potsdam, searching for a suitable material. That is how we discovered honeycomb board. A few weeks later, panels measuring 2.40 m x 1.60 m were delivered.
My studio is a converted circus wagon. I could not paint works of that size in there. I often work outdoors, too, but the weather would not allow for it either. So we emptied a guest room. In the middle of it I built a stand on which the large panels could lie. I could just about walk around them.
The large format was a revelation for me. I came to love the honeycomb board, with all the possibilities it opened up for my pastel painting.
I worked intensively on the pieces for the cathedral for four months. As soon as a picture was finished, it was taken by van to the carpenter I trust. He made the frames and glazed them.
It was very exciting when the pictures were at last complete. They set off right on schedule on 22 April 2021. At noon they arrived at the cathedral. The sexton received them and, together with the driver, safely stored them in the sacristy.
Holger, Ilona and I also set off for the Rheingau on 22 April 2021. The next morning we drove on to Wiesbaden. From Wandlitz we had commissioned the printing of the large posters with the titles and texts for the reverse of the pictures; they had to be collected. The sun shone. Spring was at its best, ten degrees warmer than at home, and the lilac was in bloom.
We needed two full days for the preparations and for hanging the pictures from the galleries. Without the help of Bettina and Sebastian Braun we would never have managed the final stage. Five people were needed to haul the large works up and secure them.
At the end of July it was time to say farewell - though not entirely. One of the large-format pictures, “Tree of Life - 2021”, remained in the Rheingauer Dom as its first modern work of art.
As a rule the dismantling of an exhibition goes more quickly than its installation. On 30 July we were done packing and loading the pictures by midday, so in the afternoon we were able to enjoy the sunny, wonderful Rheingau. With an intermediate stop in Wandlitz, the remaining works will travel on - and will, among other things, be on view again in 2022 at a planned exhibition in Erfurt.
My thanks go to all the dear helpers, especially to Holger and Ilona Vonderlind.