Eröffnung der Ausstellung "Pflanzen"

Exhibition by Cornelius Völker

We cordially invite you to the opening of the exhibition.

After the welcome by the chairwoman of the board of the Dr.-Hanns-Simon-Stiftung, Ms. Stephanie Kaak, the curator will give an introduction to the exhibition. Prof. Dr. Robert Fleck will speak about the artist and Cornelius Völker will be present at the vernissage.
We are very much looking forward to your coming. For more information, please visit the homepage.
Admission to the vernissage is free.

The painter Cornelius Völker (* 1965), who studied at the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf under Professors A.R. Penck and Dieter Krieg, has been teaching painting as a professor at the Kunstakademie Münster since 2005. The autumn exhibition at the Neue Galerie in Haus Beda will showcase pictures of flowers, blossoms, and plants by Cornelius Völker. 'Weeds' are also included, revealing their 'beautiful' sides as the artist shows.

Cornelius Völker has been dedicating himself to plant motifs since 2013. Of more recent origin are the large-format flower bouquets, which are covered with cellophane for durability. While the flowers wrapped in foil initially attract attention, focus soon shifts to the lower third of the image, where the colorful bouquets dissolve into abstract color gradients. The transparent foil, with edges shimmering white in the light, facets the floral arrangements into segments. Other floral still lifes by the artist feature hovering, variably colored shimmering flowers on an unfathomably dark, reflective ground. Autumnal clusters of flowers in ochre tones are combined by Völker with iridescent, turquoise blue and violet leaf formations and color splashes. Flower stems in glass vases with yellowish cloudy water refer to the fleeting beauty of flower bouquets, without showing them. The deeply bowed flowers in the Delft porcelain vases, reflected in a shiny base, are masterfully staged ephemerality. The gradual wilting of the plant motifs is depicted by Cornelius Völker as openly as he once presented the condition of male bodies unembellished.

The conceptually working artist Cornelius Völker proves to be a profound connoisseur of art history, both with plant subjects and all his other motifs. The artist repeatedly adopts traditional pictorial subjects and explores them visually in his partly representational, partly abstract painting: According to Reinhard Spieler, art historical cross-references can be found in almost every work of Cornelius Völker. His paintings always 'demand' a viewing close to the canvas as well as from a distance: “Up close, one sees the individual components of the painting, the drops and individual brushstrokes, the various layers…” (Gail B. Kierckpatrick). From a greater distance, the individual pictorial objects are clearer to recognize.

All subjects of the artist – handbags, chocolate bars, fine rib underwear, updos, swimmers, medications, clouds, stacks of books, guinea pigs, small dogs …, are characterized by painting that is sometimes pasty and sometimes glazes, which is always also an intellectual experience: a 'bathing' in color formations and a school of vision.

Opening Hours:
Tuesday - Friday 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Saturday, Sunday, and public holidays 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Closed on Mondays

From December 19, 2026, to January 3, 2027 (inclusive), Haus Beda and the Neue Galerie will be closed.