In its inaugural exhibition the Museum Kunst der Westküste presents over 250 paintings from the collection of Dr. hc. mult. Frederik Paulsen, the museum’s founder. Created between 1830 and 1930, these works reflect a fascination with the maritime world and display an impressive panorama of motifs ranging from Bergen aan Zee in the Netherlands to Bergen in southern Norway and beyond.
Heralding Modernism, European artists in the 19th and early 20th centuries travelled to secluded places on the continental coasts of the North Sea, in order to engage more intensely in “plein-air” landscape painting. The unfamiliar gamut of subjects offered by the maritime environment provided them with a hoped-for contrast to the traditional idealism of the painting schools in the urban centres. Their paintings are characterized by a wealth of romantic, realistic and impressionist painting styles typical of the 19th century, with the scope of aesthetic approaches ranging from early modern experimentation all the way to agrarian-romantic glorifications of life in the countryside and at the seaside. The artists captured dramatic seascapes, panoramic views of sublime Nordic fjords, flat landscapes, broad horizons, as well as snapshots of elegant touristic beach life, just as they portrayed locals and their living conditions.
Three works of contemporary artists complement the exhibition: in his installation “Light Bridge” the media artist Mischa Kuball generates artificially flowing water along a 30 meter stretch. The video piece “The Great Escape” by the Dutch artist Jeroen Offerman translates the classic theme of romantic escape into present-day imagery. The set designer Birgit Angele has created a “BLUEroom” for children and teenagers using ultramarine colour.
