Kestel calls his working method intuitive process painting. Visitors experience not only new working techniques, but also the expressive power of unfamiliar materials of astonishing intensity. "At the beginning of my paintings, I only know which material I will use. The structures and surfaces emerge as an expression of my inner self. Unimagined effects arise. My works are thus only conditionally controllable. The material co-determines." (Anton Kestel)
At first this sounds demanding, even unwieldy. But the space seems to be made to make the works talk and thus be experienced. The somber works in the series "Tender Petrification" enter into a symbiosis with the 274-year-old walls of the former synagogue. The paintings are labeled "Freiräume" or "Zarte Versteinerung," while the sculptures are labeled "Figur auf Steinsockel," thus leaving room for the viewer's own reception. Only one work has a "real" name: a seated black figure with a dove of peace in its lap: "L'Espérence - die Hoffnung". It was created in the first days after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and is positioned here in front of the 100 x 120 cm large, single color-intensive painting, "Freiräume 3", on the spot where the Torah shrine once stood in the synagogue.
Inspired by the works on display and the atmosphere of the late afternoon in the former synagogue, a friend of Kestel's set an unplanned accent by spontaneously fetching his cello and playing a prelude by Johann Sebastian Bach. Guests stayed into the evening to learn about, interpret, and discuss the work. They were convinced that the former synagogue was the right place to experience Kestel's paintings and sculptures and hope that many more visitors will take advantage of this opportunity over the next few weekends.
Place: Former synagogue Obernbreit, An der Synagoge 1 Obernbreit
Opening hours each Saturday and Sunday from 14°° to 18°° on 13/14, 20/21 and 27/28 August 2022.
Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
