Couven Museum

Doll Dreams
2012-05-12 - 2012-09-02
A doll is a reproduction of a human figure. Dolls count as one of the oldest and most beloved children’s toys, but they are also popular as collectables and decorative objects. Dolls were being fashioned as long ago as in ancient Egypt, ancient Greece and Rome. We are not certain whether such dolls were meant as toys or whether they served cult purposes. But we do know that all these cultures had children who played with dolls made of various materials.

With industrialisation, which had been immediately preceded by the discovery of childhood in the Romantic and Biedermeier periods, in the 19th century the art of doll-making reached a peak. All kinds of materials were used like porcelain, rubber, wax, tin, composites, and celluloid. And the doll became a generally popular object. The exhibition shows a wide range of emotionally appealing examples from the world of dolls: German and French porcelain and celluloid dolls, Italian felt dolls, Käthe Kruse dolls from the end of the 19th century to the mid-20th century.

Flyer Doll Dreams

The Infant Jesus in a Glass Shrine – the magic of Baroque convent handicrafts
2011-11-19 - 2012-02-12
With the Counter-Reformation, pomp and splendour started entering the liturgy, the pilgrimage business was revitalised and the cult of saints and relics received a boost. Adoration of the infant Jesus, an established practice in Southern Germany and the Alpine countries since medieval times, although until the Reformation mostly restricted to the confines of convents, now became public. Some of the most famous figures of the infant Jesus began turning up as copies not only in churches but also in urban and rural circles, usually set up and adored as “The Christ Child” at Christmas.
From the mid-16th century, the Christmas Crib also experienced an enormous upswing in popularity, not least thanks to the efforts of the Jesuits. In Catholic regions, religious customs governed daily life. The exhibition presents numerous objects that reconstruct and illustrate the various facets of Baroque piety. pilgrimage baby Jesus, rustic infants in swaddling, cradles and glass boxes, relic images, votive and devotional pictures as well as cribs that relate to two significant crib landscapes: Upper Swabia and Naples.
The exhibition also covers the topic of the “spiritual medicine cabinet” with Baroque remedies like phylacteries, consecrated objects for protection, rosaries, prayer book pictures, fabric relics and amulets. These exhibits illustrate how people protected themselves against maladies of the body and soul.
The aim of staging this exhibition from the collection of Monika Lennartz in the Couven Museum’s late Baroque setting of middle class home culture is to bring Baroque piety back to life, especially in terms of the customs associated with Christmastime, and to shed new light on familiar and forgotten practices.
An exhibition catalogue will be available.

The Secret Life of Ornaments
2011-09-24 - 2011-10-30
A variety of small animals will populate the Couven Museum from 24 September to 30 October. The filigree creatures are shaped from wire and paper. There are imaginary beetles and other artistically formed animals, all of them very aesthetic and pleasing to the eye. They are not here by accident. On closer inspection they reveal themselves to be mutations of the omnipresent Rococo ornamentations in the furniture. Odine Lang goes on the hunt for these multifaceted ornamentations, captures them with her camera and frees them from their original contexts. Because the objects always reflect organic forms, the ornamentations come alive in a way that gives a subtle touch of eeriness to the familiar Rococo ambience. The Aachen-based artist, originally from Göttingen, transforms historical ornamentations into lifelike creatures that have a surreal and bemusing effect in these surroundings.

The exhibition takes place as part of the 14th Aachen Art Route on 24 and 25 September 2011.
The catalogue costs 4,- €

La Beauté – The History of Cosmetics
2011-05-14 - 2011-09-04
Ideals of beauty and the means to achieve them have changed from age to age. Cosmetics have always been used to maintain and beautify the human face. Throughout the ages, beneficial substances, layers of highlight and select perfumes have served to groom our appearance and surround us with an aura of irresistibility. Yet cosmetics were a luxury that for centuries only the upper classes could afford. This is evident in the noble containers and finely worked utensils of precious materials from the various historical periods.

Portraits provide us with a running report on how ideals of beauty and fashion have changed over the centuries, but also on popular make-up techniques through the years. And these were more often than not anything but good for the health. For example, from as early as antiquity the noble pallor of a white face was achieved by means of toxic white lead. Cosmetic guides only began recommending healthier recipes from the Age of Enlightenment on. For the “home-made” cosmetics of the hairdressers and perfumers, powder vendors and fancy goods traders, the expensive raw materials were available from the pharmacy. With industrialisation in the 19th and 20th centuries, care and beauty products became affordable for wider sectors of society. But what remains to this day is the sense of luxury created by the exquisite decoration of powder boxes, perfume flasks, pots of cream and, last but not least, lipstick tubes.

This exhibition takes a tour through the history of seductive cosmetics from antiquity to the present day. In cooperation with Babor Cosmetics, an internationally operating Aachen family business, a selection of objects and paintings relating to the culture of cosmetics will be on show. Visitors will also get an insight in the fast-moving yet highly characteristic trends of fashionable beauty and cosmetics from the 1950s to the present day.
Flyer La Beauté

How the West was Sobered Up
2010-12-04 - 2011-03-20
Coffee arrived in Europe at just about the same time as tea, in the 17th century. Coffee had previously only been popular among the Arabs in Africa; tea originated in Asia. Initially, the new imports to Europe were enjoyed in aristocratic circles before they gradually established themselves in the middle classes. They replaced the previously typical consumption of alcoholic beverages like wine, beer and spirits and were hailed as “the great soberers”. Their popularity reflected the spirit of the Enlightenment that influenced general thinking in the 18th century.
Enjoyment of the costly exotic luxuries coffee and tea called for new equipment for their preparation and presentation. In addition to coffee roasters and coffee grinders, it was porcelain crockery that the elite required to maintain credibility of their social standing. The exhibition shows the cultural change heralded in by the spread of the new hot beverages in Europe and presents the many facets of the new culture of coffee and tea.
Opens: 3 December 2010, 7 pm
Flyer Coffee Tea

500 Golden Years
2010-10-09 - 2010-11-28
This year, Aachen’s Guild of Goldsmiths is celebrating its 500th anniversary. The Couven Museum is taking part in the celebrations. It is one of three venues, and will be exhibiting secular works from gold and silver workshops in Aachen. The Guild of Goldsmiths’ exhibition will be on show in the Sparkasse Aachen, while examples of sacred gold and silver work will be displayed in Aachen’s Cathedral Treasury.
Exhibits range from the works of well-known older Aachen goldsmiths and family businesses (von Rodt, von Orsbach, Joh. Theod. Cremer, Hub. Moeren) and those of workshops from the period of historicism to the works of master goldsmiths of the recent past and the present day. The works on show include centrepieces, cutlery, ornamental trophies, chains of office, riflemen’s silver and individual pieces of jewellery.
Preview: 8 October 2010, 5 -6 pm

100 Artists – 100 Tiles 2010
2010-09-25 - 2010-10-24
As part of the Aachen Art Route 2010, 100 tiles designed by 100 contemporary artists will be temporarily added to the Couven Museum’s permanent exhibition of mostly Dutch tiles from the 17th and 18th centuries from the Ludwig Foundation.
This project, already realised in 2007 in the Ludwig Forum, Aachen and in 2009 in the Zinkhütter Hof, Stolberg, and now reaching its conclusion in the Couven Museum, grew from the initiative of the artist Gabriele Prill. The starting point for all the artistic designs is a white, standard tile. The tiles are worked on with a range of different materials like porcelain paint, copper foil, steel, oils and acrylics, gold leaf, glue, wood, glass, burlap, spray paint or silicon.
The results are as varied as the individual artists’ approaches. Artist from the region and far beyond, and even some international artists are taking part in the action, which culminates in a social project. On 24 October, the 100 tiles will be auctioned, the proceeds going to the charity BUNTER KREIS in der Region Aachen e.V.
Opens: 24 September 2010, 7 pm
www.100kuenstler-100kacheln.de

Easter Eggs, Bunnies and Old Customs
2010-02-20 - 2010-04-18
On display in numerous rooms of the museum: around 150 Easter objects that belong to the collections of Monika Lennartz from Mönchengladbach.
The exhibits are divided into three categories offering comprehensive overviews of religious Easter imagery, the evolution of the bunny as the Easter gift giver, and the egg as a highly popular Easter decoration. There are also several showcases devoted to familiar and lesser known regional variations of Easter customs.

Flyer: Easter objects

Nice 'n Warm
2009-11-28 - 2010-01-31
In this exhibition, the Couven Museum takes a look at the history of domestic heating culture and technology.
Magnificent fireplaces, dainty stoves, elegant fire screens and gleaming brass accessories are on display in Haus Monheim in their roles as functional and representative elements of interior design.
The history of domestic heating technology also covers the whole range of useful and indispensable objects of daily use from the cast iron cooking range and the waffle iron to bed warmers and ironing machines. The true-to-original doll’s oven and its accessories transport the observer into the world of childish play.

For the first time, selected exhibits from an only recently accessed collection of stove tiles from the Renaissance and Baroque eras are on display. They provide an impressive overview of the products of the major hubs of central European pottery tradition. In addition to the art history of stove ceramics, wrought iron casting and middle class interior design, the exhibition also focuses on the technical aspects of stove and hearth construction. These are traced back to the beginnings of central heating and the pioneer work of Hugo Junker in the field of the bathroom gas geyser.

There is an accompanying programme of talks on cultural history as well as events that address current issues in the fields of energy technologies and climate research.
Flyer Nice ‘n Warm
Catalogue Nice ‘nWarm
School programme Nice ‘n Warm
Events Nice ‘n Warm

Rococo Relevance
2009-09-26 - 2009-11-08
Two artists – the Aachen-based Dutch artist Luc Merx and Darmstadt-based Holmer Schleyerbach – are collaborating in the joint project Rococo Relevance, which focuses on the fringe zone between art and architecture. As part of the project, they have developed an installation for the Couven Museum that involves several rooms with furniture, paintings and porcelain from the 18th century.

The starting point for the works of Luc Merx and Holmer Schleyerbach is the architecture of the 18th century and rocaille ornamentation. In the design of Rococo, the way it creates an optical illusion of plasticity, the artists see parallels to virtual architecture and image composition.

Their photomurals take the principle of Rococo and translate it into contemporary ornamentation. The porcelain landscapes also reflect the style of Rococo, both in the choice of medium and in the composition of the surfaces. A ceiling lamp displays intertwined and illusionistically formed naked human figures in Baroque movement.
Flyer Rococo Relevance

Süße Versuchung. Vom Kakao zur Schokolade
2009-05-09 - 2009-09-13
Das Aachener Couven-Museum, das sich im Haus Monheim befindet, ist über seine Familientradition mit der Geschichte der Schokolade verbunden: 1857 stellte ein italienischer Chocolatier im Auftrag des Leonhard Monheim, Sohn des im Haus Monheim lebenden Apothekers Johann Peter Joseph Monheim, die erste Tafelschokolade in Deutschland her. Vertrieben wurden Kakao und Schokolade in dieser Zeit noch vorwiegend in Apotheken, galt Schokolade doch als Stärkungs- und Heilmittel. So wurden auch in der Apotheke des Hauses Monheim Schokoladenpastillen sowie Salben und Zäpfchen aus Kakaobutter verkauft.
Vor diesem Hintergrund bietet das Couven-Museum geradezu das adäquate Ambiente für die Ausstellung Süße Versuchung, die zunächst gar nicht süß war. Als die Spanier im 16. Jahrhundert die Kakaobohne mit nach Europa brachten, galt die Pflanze als (All-)Heilmittel und die Kirche erkannte sie (aufgrund ihres so gar nicht köstlichen Geschmackes) als Fastenspeise an. Im Laufe des 17. und 18. Jahrhunderts entwickelte sich der Kakao, immer in flüssiger Form dargereicht, zum luxuriösen Genussmittel des Adels und des reichen Bürgertums. Dies schlägt sich nicht nur in diversen Rezepten, sondern auch in kostbarem Porzellan und in aufwändigen Silberservices nieder. Erst im 19. Jahrhundert wurde der Kakao für breite Bevölkerungsschichten erschwinglich und am Ende dieses Jahrhunderts die Tafelschokolade als kostbare Süßigkeit des Bürgertums beliebt.
Das Couven-Museum zeichnet die Geschichte der Schokolade von ihren Anfängen bis in das 20. Jahrhundert nach. Schwerpunkte sind die Schokoladenkultur im Barock sowie im bürgerlichen 19. Jahrhundert, zwei Epochen, die im Couven-Museum durch Gegenstände der Wohnkultur repräsentiert sind. Aber auch kritische Töne sollen nicht fehlen. Kolonialismus, Ausbeutung und Faire Trade werden angesprochen.
Eröffnung: 8. Mai 2009, 19 Uhr, Ballsaal Altes Kurhaus.
Flyer Suesse Versuchung

Fascination and Myth of the Amber Room
2008-11-01 - 2009-01-06
The material amber emanates pure fascination. Throughout history, amber crafted into jewellery, decorative objects and objects of daily use has always been a symbol of luxury and power. Translucent golden-yellow and reddish-brown tones give this precious stone its characteristic appearance.
The famous Amber Room from the Catherine Place in Tsarskoje Selo near St. Petersburg, a chamber completely decorated with amber wall panels that went missing in the confusion at the end of the Second World War, is the stuff that myths are made of. Its singular preciousness and outstanding craftsmanship – it was hailed as the “Eighth Wonder of the World” – and the mystery surrounding its disappearance ensure its status as an object of enduring fascination.
The Amber Room was crafted in Gdansk and Kaliningrad and originally intended for installation at the Charlottenburg Palace. In 1716 it was presented as a gift by King Friedrich Wilhelm I of Prussia to the Russian Tsar Peter the Great. It was his daughter, Tsarina Elizabeth, who finally had the Amber Room installed in the Catherine Palace in Tsarskoje Selo. During the Second World War the amber panels were transported to Kaliningrad, from where they were removed in 1945, never to be seen again.
In 1981 the “Amber Workshop Tsarskoje Selo” was founded in the former summer residence of the Russian Tsars for the purpose of reconstructing and restoring the Amber Room. In 2003, on the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the City of St. Petersburg, the reconstructed Amber Room was inaugurated in the Catherine Palace.
The exhibition presents the ambitious and at the same time highly sensitive work of the Amber Workshop. Icons, caskets, vessels, candle holders and other precious items are on display. These exhibits are accompanied historical images and documents. In the exhibition, a master of the art of amber carving performs smaller tasks before the eyes of the visitors, helping them to really understand what a difficult task the carving of this precious stone is, and what an incredible artistic and technical accomplishment the Amber Workshop has achieved. The exhibition is also accompanied by a film about the Amber Room and its Resurrection.

allure & mystery – The Amber Room

Anita Brendgens
2008-09-27 - 2009-02-01
In the context of the Aachen Art Route, the Couven Museum presents an exhibition of contemporary art which, rather than contrasting diametrically with middle class interior decor of the 18th and 19th centuries, actually fits harmoniously into the given ambience of the museum. Anita Brendgens forms objects of daily use from papier mâché and hangs them on thin threads so that they float freely in space. But the objects are never translated into the paper medium in their entirety; they always remain fragmented, emphasising in their non finito the fragility of the original objects. Fruit baskets, vegetable dishes, candlesticks, soup tureens and dishes, such themes of table culture define her work. Due to the whiteness of the paper, the weightless, floating three-dimensional elements gleam and transport the observer into a different, light-filled world more akin to a dream. The art of Anita Brendgens tells poetic stories of reminiscence and vulnerability, stories that find an appropriate setting in the Couven Museum.

50 years of Couven Museum in Haus Monheim
2008-05-10 - 2008-09-21
After devastation in the war, the Couven Museum was re-established in Haus Monheim in 1958 and is now 50 years old. To celebrate this anniversary, the museum is offering visitors a look back into the past. Old photos show the initial furnishing of the house and provide glimpses of the newly rebuilt “Front Room” of Aachen, devoted to the subject of middle class interior decoration in the 18th and 19th centuries.
A short film enables visitors to relive the atmosphere back in those early days. The beginning of the Couven Museum is contrasted with today’s reality to highlight all the many changes that have taken place over the last 50 years. Individual objects that characterised the atmosphere of the Couven Museum 50 years ago are now in urgent need of restoration. A review of some of the planned projects for restoration of the old furnishings illustrates the lively approach to handling this historical legacy.
Flyer 50 Years of Couven Museum

From Grandma's Christmas Parlour: Historical Christmas tree decorations from private collections
2007-12-01 - 2008-02-03
Richly decorated Christmas parlours fascinated people in historical times. Trees and walls were decorated with Santas, angels and tinsel, and sleighs and Christmas nutcrackers put a sparkle in children’s eyes.
Historical Christmas decorations have long been popular collectables. Numerous private collections are dedicated to this field, which has a special significance as a reflection of middle class life in bygone times. The collection of historical Christmas tree decorations and Christmas paraphernalia on show in the Couven Museum belongs to the Eschweiler collector Heinz Lanzen, who has accumulated an extensive collection of almost 800 objects. They range from items from the Biedermeier period to curious little devil baubles from the ’20s and decorations from the mid ’40s of the 20th century.

01.12.2007 – 03.02.2008
Opens: 30.11.2007, 7.00 pm
Flyer From Grandma’s Christmas Parlour

Art Nouveau Dreams
2007-06-06 - 2007-10-21
Summer 2007 sees an exhibition in the rooms of the Couven Museum of a selection of items from one of the greatest private collections of art nouveau. The internationally acclaimed former violinist and concertmaster Giorgio Silzer, originally from Upper Silesia, was a passionate collector who over the years accumulated an extensive collection of hand-crafted art nouveau items.

This summer, a selection of items from one of the greatest private collections of art nouveau will be on show in the stylish ambience of the Couven Museum. The internationally acclaimed former violinist and concertmaster Giorgio Silzer, originally from Upper Silesia, was a passionate collector who over the years accumulated an extensive collection of hand-crafted art nouveau items. The exhibition features objects of everyday use made of ceramic, glass and pewter as well as a rich array of silver cutlery. All the prominent workshops of the time, from Berlin to Paris, from Vienna and St. Petersburg to Nancy and Sèvres are represented. Masterpieces by famous designers from Peter Behrens, Joseph Maria Olbrich and Henry van der Velde to Peter Carl Fabergé and Emile Gallé bring the world of the “belle époque” back to life.
The collection offers a characteristic insight into the stylish innovations of the art nouveau period between 1885 and 1914 in its ambivalent trends between playfully ornamental incorporation of vegetable forms and more sober design aimed at a conciliation of form and function. The rejection of historicism cleared the way for introduction of new artistic ideas, e.g. from Japanese and Oriental art, or from pre-classical antiquity. The prime objective was to create a new synthesis of the arts that would impact on everyday life, an aesthetic unity of architecture, fine arts and performing arts, handicrafts and general lifestyle. The cultural emergence of art nouveau, which spread through all of the industrialised nations and redefined life philosophy and the internationalism of artistic creation alike, ultimately became the foundation of the modern age after the First World War.

The exhibition will subsequently move to the History Museum in Marstall, Paderborn Schloß Neuhaus (17 November 2007 – 27 January 2008)
An exhibition catalogue is available at a price of 10,- Euro

13 x 13 – The World in Squares
2005-12-04 - 2006-04-30
The historic house at the Hühnermarkt has around 300 Dutch tiles from a private collection on display. In combination with its own inventory of historical ceramic tiles from the Ludwig Collection, the Couven Museum thus offers a comprehensive insight into home living in the 16th to 19th centuries.

Decorative ceramic tiles originated in the Middle East, making their way first to Spain and ultimately to the Netherlands, where by the end of the 16th century numerous factories were specialising in the production of faience and tiles. In the 17th century the Netherlands experienced an economic and cultural heyday, often referred to as its “Golden Age”. Prosperity resulted in the rapid growth of the cities, and the middle classes maintained town residences and country estates that were lavishly decorated with tiles.
During the 17th century, the range of pictorial motifs expanded to include scenes of daily life. Such depictions of everyday life placed less emphasis on realism and more on instant recognition. On an area of 13 x 13 cm, the artists succeeded in depicting small image worlds that were at the same time representations of the real world. The Baroque understanding of art and decoration required the decoration pattern on the walls to be an integral whole. The pictures on the tiles were designed to serve this specific taste. And so we find that the animals are often depicted jumping in the same direction and that the figures often stand in the same landscape – in essence, uniformity over individuality.
The motifs of the wall tiles include flora and fauna, landscapes and recurrent portrayals of people at work and at play. On the so-called “children’s games” tiles, the little ones are depicted playing marbles (“Knikkeren”), riding hobby horses (“Stockpaardje”) or playing badminton. On the “Ambacht tiles” we find portrayals of a range of handicrafts, for example a cobbler and a tanner at work. Soldiers in contemporary uniform perform military drills; magnificent horsemen sit high on prancing horses. Landscape tiles show coastal scenes with ships out at sea and, of course, the obligatory Dutch windmills.
Opening:
Sunday, 04.12.2005, 11.00
24.12., 25.12. und 31.12.2005 closed
01.04.2005 ab 13.00 open
3,00 Euro / 1,50 Euro
Further information (German):
Geschichte der Fliesenkeramik
Kinder im Couven
Museumspaedagogisches Angebot

Booking:
Museen der Stadt Aachen
Wilhelmstraße 18
D – 52070 Aachen
Tel +49 (0)241 / 47980-0 / -20
info@suermondt-ludwig-museum.de
www.suermondt-ludwig-museum.de
13 x 13. De wereld in kwadraat
Nederlandse tegels uit privé bezit
Vanaf 4 december 2005 t/m 30 april 2006 toont het Couven-Museum ongeveer 300 Nederlandse tegels uit privé bezit. Als aanvulling op de historische tegelkeramiek uit de verzameling Ludwig wordt zo een uitvoerig inzicht in het leven en het lef- en wooncultuur verleend van de 16de tot de 19de eeuw.
13 x 13. The world as square
Dutch tiles from two rhenish private collections
From 4th December 2005 to 30th April 2006 the Couven Museum shows about 300 Duch tiles from private collection. In connection with its own stock of historical tile ceramics from the collection Ludwig, the exhibition gives an extensive insight into the life and domestic culture from the 16th to the 19th century.
13 x 13. Le Monde en carré
Carreaux néerlandais de collection privée
Du 4 décembre 2005 au 30 avril 2006 le Musée Couven montre environ 300 carreaux néerlandais de possession privée. En liaison avec son ensemble de la céramique de carreaux historique de la collection Ludwig, un aperçu global est accordé dans la vie quotidienne et les conditions de logement du 16ème au 19ème siècle.
