The “Germania – Protector of Art and Science” was a hit at the 1893 World Exhibition in Chicago. After 130 years, the monumental KPM mural, which consists of 1,057 artistically painted tiles, has returned to its place of origin.
It is now called “Glory of Germania”. And the leaders of Berlin’s city society, including the Governing Mayor Kai Wegner and his predecessors Klaus Wowereit and Michael Müller, were the first to be able to see the huge, six by five meter, already partially restored picture as part of the KPM Foundation Festival.
But they were by no means the only ones who were curious about the allegory that symbolized Germany at the end of the 19th century.
High acceptance rate for birthdays
Host Jörg Woltmann, who took over the porcelain factory in 2006 when it was in dire straits and led it to new heights, was surprised by the 90 percent acceptance rate, which is very rare in Berlin. He also made a few changes and postponed the celebration of the 261st birthday of the traditional factory, which once belonged to Frederick the Great, by one day.
A section of the painting
© KPM / Holger Talinski
On the actual birthday, there were too many competing events in Berlin. He didn’t want to burden his guests, and perhaps himself, with the agony of choice. Fortunately, there is no shortage of space on the spacious KPM site in Tiergarten, especially when the evening temperatures are warm.
261
years old is the tradition of high porcelain art in Berlin.
In an almost familial atmosphere, André Schmitz from the board of the Royal Porcelain Manufactory Berlin Foundation, Vera Gäde-Butzlaff from the board of trustees met with the chairwoman of the Friends of the German Opera, Heike von Joest, Auerbach boss Jan-Henrik Scheper-Stuke and freight railway board member Sigrid Nikutta among a good 200 guests.
The honorary auctioneer Kilian Jay von Seldeneck and his wife Alice, Patrick Graf Faber-Castell, actress Dennenesch Zoudé, racecourse owner Gerhard Schöningh, networker Alexandra Oetker, publisher Florian Langenscheidt and racing club manager Tini Gräfin Rothkirch also came to celebrate the adventurous story of the picture.
Tile sponsorships for 500 euros
The restoration is not yet complete and donations are urgently needed. But anyone who likes porcelain can sponsor a tile for 500 euros or give it as a gift. The host set a good example and gave the Governing Mayor a tile sponsorship as a gift for the State of Berlin.
“Glory of Germania” in full, but not yet complete beauty
© KPM / Holger Talinski
Wegner had previously praised his predecessor Klaus Wowereit for getting KPM on the right track. However, he now knows that it is not enough to make the right decisions. You also need people who can implement them.
Praise of passion and creativity
That was the starting point for a eulogy for Jörg Woltmann, for his passion and creativity and his great commitment, not just financially, to the city’s cultural flagship. Over the years, the banker has repeatedly said at many social events that he earns money in the morning at his bank in order to spend it again in the afternoon at the KPM.
Contact the Foundation
Royal Porcelain Manufactory Foundation Berlin, Wegelystrasse 1, Tiergarten
Phone 030-390 09 – 0
E-Mail: INFO@STIFTUNG-KPM.DE
Reinhard Andress, a professor of German studies at Loyola University Chicago, was also there and, with his keen sense of detective skills, he rediscovered the painting. After the World’s Fair, it initially adorned the ballroom of the Germania Club in Chicago, which closed in 1986. Packed in 16 boxes, it then gathered dust for years in the attic of a retirement home.
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The restoration is the first major scientific project of the KPM Foundation, which Jörg Woltmann founded in 2016 to secure the future of the company. The painting will be made accessible to the public as part of guided tours. A print of the “Glory of Germania” can be viewed in the inner courtyard of the KPM (Wegelystrasse 1), easily accessible for walkers.
Behind the figure you can see the towers of Cologne Cathedral, which was the tallest building in the world in 1893. The KPM artists also painted personalities from art and science on the tiles, including the painter Albrecht Dürer, the philosopher Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibniz and the printer Johannes Gutenberg.
