“Stone Witnesses – niemi światkowie. Architectural Photography from East and West Prussia” is the title of the new exhibition, which opened on Saturday 11 July in the Martyrs’ Choir of St Mary’s Church in Frankfurt (Oder). This German-Polish travelling exhibition features photographs of historic buildings from East and West Prussia by the art historian and professor Christofer Herrmann.
Historic buildings are stone witnesses to the past. The events and occurrences of past centuries have left many traces and marks on the physical surfaces of these architectural monuments, bearing witness to their construction, damage, restoration and a wide variety of human destinies. This is also evident in the landscape of historic East and West Prussia, the medieval territory of the Teutonic Order, where Prussians, Germans, Poles and Lithuanians once lived together. Through 25 photographs, the exhibition showcases the beauty and fascination of the ruins of bygone eras from various perspectives. The photographs range from impressive panoramic views of the interiors and exteriors of castles and churches from the Teutonic Order era to delicate close-ups.
The art historian Christofer Herrmann, born in Mainz, is an expert on the medieval architecture of the former State of the Teutonic Order and taught at Polish universities for more than two decades.
The exhibition is supported by the Cultural Foundation of German Expellees, Bonn.
Admission is free. The Martyrchor is not wheelchair accessible.
