Museum im Kunsthaus
Eine Ausstellung im Rahmen des Gemeinschaftsprojekts "Hell & Dunkel" zum 25jährigen Jubiläum des Museumsverbunds "Landpartie - Museen rund um München"
Diese Ausstellung wird gefördert vom Bezirk Oberbayern, vom Landkreis Fürstenfeldbruck, der Sparkasse Fürstenfeldbruck und den Stadtwerken Fürstenfeldbruck.
Seit jeher versuchen Menschen, die Dunkelheit durch Licht zu vertreiben. Künstliche Lichtquellen ermöglichten es, die Nacht zu Tag zu machen und ließen Tätigkeiten zu, die in der Finsternis kaum oder gar nicht möglich waren.
Der Wunsch, es immer dort hell zu haben, wo und wann man möchte, trieb die Entwicklung des künstlichen Lichts mit der zunehmenden Industrialisierung im 19. Jahrhundert rasch voran. Die Erfindung der Glühbirne war ein technischer Meilenstein in diesem Prozess.
Illuminated! The Fascination of Electric Light
Museum in the ‘Kunsthaus’
Our exhibition ‘Light and Dark’ is a joint project of a group of museums in the Munich area known as ‘Landpartie’ which celebrates a quarter century of successful cooperation this year.
The exhibition is sponsored by the District of Upper Bavaria, the administrative district of Fürstenfeldbruck as well as the ‘Sparkasse’ and municipal utilities company of Fürstenfeldbruck.
Mankind, since its beginnings, has been trying to conquer darkness. The desire to pursue activities independent of daylight accelerated the development of artificial light, particularly so during the 19th century industrial revolution. A major milestone in the process was without doubt the invention of the light bulb.
Nightlife started to evolve on the brightly lit boulevards of cities, leisure activities could now also take place at night.
The ‘Master of the Intelligent Light’, Jean Perzel (1892-1986) who was born in Fürstenfeldbruck learnt the glass painting trade with a renowned stained-glass design company in Munich, F.X. Zettler. He lived in Paris and specialised in lamp design from 1923, becoming one of the most renowned Art Deco ‘lamp artists’.
The historical context of electrification plays a very special role in Fürstenfeldbruck. Due to Oskar von Miller’s family ties with Fürstenfeldbruck the town was among the first worldwide to have a central electricity supply. The 16th of October 1892 saw the streets of Fürstenfeldbruck illuminated for the first time.
Oskar von Miller attempted and succeeded to build a simple but reliable hydro power plant in the village of Schöngeising, the turbines of his showpiece being powered by the river Amper. Today’s engine room is still equipped with the original ‘Miller turbine’.
Beautiful Power – Photographs by Karl Heinz Rothenberger
Professor Karl Heinz Rothenberger studied medicine in Munich and Zürich. The head physician from ‘Landshut’ developed an interest in photography at an early stage in life and has contributed to numerous exhibitions since. Today the artist’s and medic’s focus is wholly on black and white photography. With the help of his Leica M7 and an analogue 35mm technology, he depicts the aesthetics of turbines, generators and power plants.
Without the ability to transmit power the electrical power plant could not have been a success. Karl Heinz Rothenberger and his camera have spent the last 20 years researching the origins of electricity and its production.
To this day, the power plants of Fürstenfeldbruck and Schöngeising which date back to 1891 and 1892 respectively, bear witness to Oskar von Miller’s pioneering achievement.
Karl Heinz Rothenberger’s photography gives testimony to man-made technical artefacts at the highest artistic level.