The theme of the tree is not only temporarily present at the Kulturforum in the form of the artistic project "Baumschule Kulturforum". Many works in the Gemäldegalerie and the Kupferstichkabinett bear witness to the fact that trees already played a role in older art. Apart from a few exceptions, however, they usually only form the staffage, i.e. serve as a frame for the actual pictorial action.

This is quite different in the work of the draughtsman and etcher Horst Janssen (Wandsbek near Hamburg 1923-1995 Hamburg): at the beginning of the 1970s, trees in moorland and meadow landscapes came to the fore for the first time in his work. His exploration of the tree as the protagonist of his thematically rich art on paper culminated in the mid-1980s in the 25-part work "Laokoon. The Trees of Annette".

The pollarded willow as a motif

Almost without exception, it is the pollarded willow, usually found near bodies of water, that unfolds its idiosyncratic life in Janssen's landscapes. This type of tree, which fascinates the artist, is a willow or basket willow that has long been used by man for economic purposes, the trunk of which is shortened after a few years at a point where new branches then sprout. Over time, the trunk forms a head-shaped thickening. Over time, the trunk forms a head-shaped thickening. They can cause the trunk to break apart without the tree dying completely.

It is this "primeval" character of the pollarded willow that Horst Janssen exploits and exaggerates in his prints. The branches of his willows, which mutate into capricious individuals, reflect the artist's manner, temperament and passions - including love.

The dialog with the Old Masters

Despite his exuberant creative power and stylistic independence, Horst Janssen found numerous inspirations in European and Asian art history, which became the starting point for his individual formal inventions. For example, there are echoes of the graphic art of the 16th and 17th centuries. In the exhibition, several works from the Kupferstichkabinett's rich collection document the prehistory of Horst Janssen's "tree enthusiasm". They are by Albrecht Altdorfer and Wolf Huber - two protagonists of the Danube School associated with the subject of landscape - as well as Rembrandt and Titian. Rembrandt and Huber use the theme of the willow (head). (Incidentally, several young willows are also among the pupils of the "Baumschule Kulturforum")

"Laokoon. The trees of Annette"

In "Laokoon. The Trees of Annette" (1986), Janssen refers associatively to the dramatic battle of the priest Laocoon and his two sons with two snakes, as depicted in the famous antique sculpture group in the Vatican.

In the central figure of Laocoon wrestling with one of the deadly snakes and rebelling against his fate, the artist sees a parallel to the wild struggle for survival of the ancient willows. In his etchings, Horst Janssen uses various papers, color tones and etching processes to explore this special life of the trees with technical finesse and a love of experimentation.

Curator

The exhibition is curated by Andreas Schalhorn, curator of modern art at the Kupferstichkabinett

A special exhibition of the Kupferstichkabinett in the Gemäldegalerie of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin