After the third week, paintings are well underway in the studio. All the artists here are preparing for our first open studio day this week on Thursday the 15th of July. Last Thursday, all the artists here for the residency, including Martin Daiber, Gyeore Lee and head of the creative studios Jörg Blenke, had a dinner prepared by Nina Stoelting on one of the terraces between the studios. There are some photos from the dinner below.
On the weekend, Nina, Paquin and I took a drive in Nina’s 1981 Mercedes ‘Tractor’ out of Aschersleben to Konradsberg. We went for a walk around the countryside after visiting Konradsburg. Konradsburg is a former castle, monastery and manor house that dates back to the 11th century. Once a large fortified settlement, much of the original structures are gone, with only a few remaining buildings surviving. It’s a fantastic setting. Even with a few remaining buildings, there is a strong presence of history there. The old Romanesque abbey church and crypt are fascinating to see. There are photos below taken inside the old abbey church and crypt.
After our walk, we went out to Gernrode. We had a drink at a local cafe followed by a visit to the Church of Saint Cyriakus, where a concert by Leipziger Blechbläserquintett was happening inside. After the concert, we visited the church’s crypt where the relics of a 4th-century martyr Saint Cyriakus once were, brought to Gernrode in 963 but lost after the Protestant Reformation. The Church of Saint Cyriakus is a beautiful medieval building, one of the few surviving examples of Romanesque Ottonian architecture. Construction of the church began in 960 designed by Margrave Gero, with additions made during the 11th and 12th centuries. There are photos of the church and courtyard below.
Simon Sieradzki 