November 25, 2016- February 5th, 2017

Patmos Art Centre, Orleans, MA

Lux Seminalis

This winter Patmos Art Center presents the exhibition Lux Seminalis by Gabriele Wilpers of Essen, Germany. Lux Seminalis or Seeds of Light, explores and reflects upon human existence in a new and original way through glass sculpture, found objects and paint. Wilpers’ stunning work of light and materiality, open to the viewer what is cracked, burnt and broken in the human condition. Utilizing these metaphors for the soul, Wilpers suggests it is through this state of brokenness, light and hope can enter to dispel the darkness.

The centerpiece of the exhibit is a series of small glass window studies, later used in a full scale glass installation, Stations of the Cross: Windows from the Catholic Church of St. Valentin in Limbach/Baden, Germany. The church in Limbach was destroyed in a devastating fire in 2003, and later rebuilt, serving as a symbol of Christ’s death and resurrection. Gabriele Wilpers gathered dust, ash and soot from the site and used them to produce a likeness of the starry sky but in negative, with the stars appearing dark against a light background, calling to mind the destruction of the church, and a reminder of the transience of human existence. The theme of transformation, the reference to the disaster and how it was overcome, and the journey of Christ’s passion to resurrection became the starting point for the church’s renovation through architectural and artistic design.

As in the Stations of the Cross, light and its many stunning and colorful manifestations take center stage in the paintings. The fragility and injuries of the underlying images contrast formally and emotionally with the brilliance of the gold and the superimposed particles such as glass granules, tiny rock crystals and gilded seeds that capture and reflect the light. Each of the seeds represents hope and promise to a suffering world.

Italiano

“Lux Seminalis” – attraverso la pittura e la scultura in vetro, lascia un’apertura a ciò che è screpolato, bruciato e rotto, e permette a queste fratture di lasciare entrare la luce. Il fulcro della mostra è una serie di finestre che sono stati utilizzate come studi per un’installazione di vetro – “Via Crucis: Finestre dalla Chiesa di San Valentino in Limbach / Baden”. Gabriele Wilpers ha creato numerose mostre e progetti, tra cui i disegni di facciate e pareti sia di chiese che di aziende private, utilizzando una varietà di metodi artistici nelle sue opere – pittura, oggetti d’installazione, film, fotografie e vetro architettonico – per riflettere e descrivere l’esistenza umana.

Gabriele Wilpers – Biography

Gabriele Wilpers designed the glass sculpture on the West Wall of the Church of the Transfiguration, connecting the oculus window and lintel (over the main doors) in a seamless design portraying Christ’s Transfiguration. In the early 1970’s, she trained as a photographer and studied painting at the Essen Folkwang School. She has worked as a freelance visual artist since 1979 on numerous exhibitions and projects, including several facade and wall designs for both churches and private companies. She won first prize in several competitions for art in the public domain. In recent years, she has designed entire church interiors for several parishes in the archdiocese of Freiburg im Breisgau.

Wilpers uses a variety of artistic methods in her artworks – painting, installation objects, film, architectural glass – to reflect and describe the  human existence. One of her focal areas besides painting and photography is spatial concept art. Her interventions in an existing space, which can be both sacred and profane in nature, question the context in which modern man lives today.

Exhibit Hours

Monday – Saturday,  11 am- 5 pm