Discovering Thorn Prikker’s Works in CologneChapel “Madonna in den Trümmern” and St. Georg Churchwith Dr, Christiane Heiser–
The Dutch artist Johan Thorn Prikker (1868–1932) is regarded as the most important stained-glass and ecclesiastical artist of Classical Modernism in the Rhineland. Significant works have been preserved in Cologne, where he taught at the renowned Werkschulen in the 1920s. In the Madonna in den Trümmern chapel, his early Holy Spirit window from 1911 is combined with works by Ewald Mataré, Georg Meistermann, Ludwig Gies, Elisabeth Treskow, Rudolf Peer, and the architecture of Gottfried Böhm, creating a unified sacred Gesamtkunstwerk.
The medieval church of St. Georg am Waidmarkt was modernised in 1929 by the Austrian cathedral architect Clemens Holzmeister, restoring its connection to the original Romanesque structure. Thorn Prikker designed the entire stained-glass programme for the church. His 52 stained-glass windows in the upper and lower churches captivate with their progressive symbolism and richness of colour, while at the same time integrating remarkably well into Holzmeister’s spatial concept of a “sachliche Mystik” (“objective mysticism”). The window designs are held in the collection of the Kunstmuseen Krefeld.
Meeting point Madonna in den Trümmern at Museum Kolumba Kolumbastraße 4, 50667 Cologne
Cost 25 Euro per person
Travel arrangements are made individually. The distances in Cologne (900 m) will be covered on foot or, if desired, by taxi (at the participant’s own expense).
PLEASE NOTE: Registration with Dr. Christiane Heiser, Tel.: +49 174 4727240, Mail: kontakt@christiane-heiser.de
