Germany

Artist: Frank Rödel

* 1954 in Weimar, Germany

1982 – 1988 Studies at the Academy of Arts in Berlin
1988 Master student, Prof. Karl Oppermann
1992 – 2002 Numerous scholarships at home and abroad, university teaching position in Thailand

2005 His painting “Adler V“ is the official present for the President of the United States, George W. Bush, from the former Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Gerhard Schröder, on the occasion of a state visit to the United States.

His paintings are in exhibitions and collections in Thailand, Spain, France, USA, Israel, etc.

www.frank-roedel.de

Interpretation

The bear has been allocated to Berlin as a representative symbol – and Berlin as the capital of Germany, the seat of the government and the Federal President - is representative of Germany – not least representative of Germany’s past history, but particularly of the most recent history that we are literally building now.

The context between the old, traditional Berlin filled with history and the modern, future-oriented city that we have only started to own emotionally – the “development into a metropolis” and “embedding Berlin into the world again” were my themes.

The Quadriga on the Brandenburg Gate and the Reichstag, seat of the German parliament, with its accessible glass dome symbolising the transparency of the democratic decision-making centre both dominate the bear’s belly. This element is repeated elsewhere with cranes in the background, testifying that the process of “becoming“ has not reached its end yet.

One arm is entwined by the new Olympic Stadium and the Olympic Rings joining those nations competing in fair contest. The Olympic tradition and the forward vision of the capital are illustrated here.

The back of the sculpture is dominated by “Friedrich the Great“ and various views of the Brandenburg Gate.

The way these motifs look is common knowledge, however, their colours and the context they have been placed in enable a new, unfamiliar kaleidoscopic view on what is seemingly so familiar.

Frank Rödel

Sponsor: Beiersdorf