2008 - Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden

Prof. Dr. Jürgen Müller, Technische Universität Dresden,
delivering his opening speech at the symposium entitled
“Bildmedien – Medienbilder” (Image Media – Media Images)
0 künstlerischen Mediums bis 1660” (Printmaking between
Reproduction and Art: On the Institutionalisation of an
Artistic Medium up to 1660).
It was organised by the Kupferstich-Kabinett in association
with the Europäisches Graduiertenkolleg (European
Postgraduate School) on “Institutional Orders, Writing and
Symbols” of the Technische Universität Dresden and the
Ecole pratique des hautes études (Paris). It traced the
emergence – and also the limits – of the “artistic character”
of European printmaking from its inception up to the
mid-17th century. Intensive discussions took place on associated
issues relating to iconography and art theory, as
well as to printing and collecting techniques.
There was also another congress to which the Kupferstich-Kabinett
was able to contribute its expertise: “Die
Techniken der Renaissancezeichnung. Vom Material zum
Stil” (The Techniques of Renaissance Drawing. From Material
to Style). This event was hosted in Florence by the
Kunsthistorisches Institut (an institution of the Max Planck
Society), and involved not just the Kupferstich-Kabinett
but also its sister institute in Florence, the Gabinetto Disegni
e Stampe degli Uffizi. This congress was concerned
with the mutual dependency of technique, material and
style in drawing between around 1435 and 1565. One of the
central questions considered the aesthetic effects of the
choice of technique and material for the development of
the artistic style vocabulary. This involved discussion of the
latest methods for the physical analysis of drawings.
Works of art and their character as media were also
analysed in a symposium dedicated to one of the most
important contemporary artists: Gerhard Richter. In as-
Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus, engraving
by Johann Martin Bernigeroth, c.1708, Kupferstich-
Kabinett
sociation with the Technische Universität Dresden (Institute
of Art and Music Studies), the Gerhard Richter Archiv of
the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden considered the
subject of “Bildmedien – Medienbilder” (Image Media – Media
Images). The symposium examined not only the diverse
levels and relationships between painting, graphic art,
photography and film in the oeuvre of Gerhard Richter;
works by other artists such as Andy Warhol and Eberhard
Havekost were also taken into account.
Finally, mention should also be made of a colloquium
which was concerned with urgent issues affecting the
Dresden art collections. Under the title “Form und Funktion”
(Form and Function), intensive discussions were held in the
Hans-Nadler-Saal of the Residenzschloss as to how 21stcentury
museums can be integrated into historical buildings.
An overview on the use of historical buildings as
museums in the past was given, and modern examples
between Warsaw and Kassel were shown. This colloquium,
organised in association with the Technische Universität
Dresden, provided the Art Collections with important impulses
for the further development of the Residenzschloss,
where it is necessary to establish a balance between the
theoretically feasible reconstruction of possible past states
and the requirements of modern museum buildings.
iNTERNATiONAL ExChANgEs
“Kunst-Tranfers” (Art Transfers) conference in the Residenzschloss
during the 47th Congress of German Historians
International exchange mainly takes the form of collaboration
on exhibitions. The Staatliche Kunstsammlungen
Dresden are a much sought-after cooperative partner, and