Today, the Abbey of Tholey is a special place between devotion and art. The oldest monastery on German soil has recently gained international fame, particularly for the choir windows of the newly renovated Early Gothic abbey church, donated by the internationally renowned contemporary artist Gerhard Richter. Also on display are impressive stained glass windows by the Afghan artist Mahbuba Elham Maqsoodi. An exhibition in the former chapter hall of the Abbey of Tholey from June 27 to October 9, 2022, now focuses on the religious imagery in the work of the significant Saarland painter Albert Weisgerber. The exhibited works come from the Albert Weisgerber Collection in St. Ingbert.
"The city of St. Ingbert can consider itself fortunate to have found a historic and dignified venue for Weisgerber’s works in the Chapter Hall of Tholey Abbey. This special exhibition of his religious artworks could not have found a better place and is a must-see for every art lover," says Mayor Prof. Dr. Ulli Meyer, who strongly recommends a visit to the citizens of St. Ingbert.
Albert Weisgerber (1878 - 1915), like August Macke and Franz Marc, belonged to that rising generation of artists in the early 20th century who paved the way for modernity. However, Weisgerber was granted little time to realize his artistic oeuvre. In 1915, he fell at the age of only 37 as a lieutenant and company commander near Fromelles in French Flanders.
Weisgerber left behind a distinctive artistic oeuvre between Impressionism and gestural expressiveness. The avant-garde collaborator became known above all as a founding member and first president of the New Munich Secession.
Biblical-religious and mythological themes have taken a prominent place in Weisgerber's work in recent years. His turn to religious and mythological subjects is undoubtedly connected to his discovery of Italian Renaissance art, which he studied extensively during several trips to Italy. Like his expressionist colleagues, Weisgerber was also inspired by reading the Bible, which served as the impetus for many of his works.
Themes of suffering and death, of struggle and overcoming came into the focus of his attention and shaped the pictorial content of his late creative period. If there was one motif that fascinated him again and again, it was Saint Sebastian. It has been rightly suspected that Weisgerber portrayed himself in Sebastian. Since ancient times, the saint has been regarded as a symbolic figure of the artist in his role as an outsider and martyr of society.
With David and Goliath as well as the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah, Weisgerber drew on further imagery from European intellectual history. His moving depictions of the lamenting Jeremiah, created during the crisis period before the First World War, reached a peak on the path to an expressive form of imagery.
“Martyrs, prophets, and fighters have also intensely occupied Tholey Abbey for more than 1388 years,” says Abbot Mauritius Choriol, who himself bears the name of Saint Mauritius, the leader of the Theban Legion, who is said to have died a martyr’s death in 303 and thereafter was regarded as the epitome of Christian steadfastness, became the patron saint of the Holy Roman Empire and its emperors, and is thus directly connected to the origin story of the Western world. “This special exhibition featuring the wonderful works of Weisgerber, who, had he not died so early in the First World War, would probably have become one of the most important artists of the 20th century, is a fitting occasion to now open our chapter hall as a museum space to the interested public.”
The exhibition in the chapter house is accessible via the entrance to the abbey church. Admission tickets are available at the Abbey's Tourist Information/Visitor Center or directly in the church.
Opening hours:
Monday – Saturday: 10 AM - 12 PM and 2 PM - 5 PM
Sunday: 1:30 PM - 5 PM
Admission prices:
Regular €5
Reduced €3
3 € discount when booking the abbey tour
Children and young people under 14 years free
Contact:
Tourist Information/Visitor Center
Römerallee 5
66636 Tholey
Tel. 0049/6853/508 66
Email: touristik@tholey.de
