Erich-Kästner-Denkmal

---

Erich-Kästner-Denkmal (Erich Kästner Memorial) by Wolf-Eike Kuntsche, 1987
Albertplatz
Dresden, September 2024

“This memorial is dedicated to the Dresden writer Erich Kästner. A collage of the things that characterized him, it is intended to bring the viewer closer to the man behind the nationally renowned author. Several of his books are stacked in a tower, with Kästner's hat on top. Surrounding the tower are writing utensils, a teacup, a copy of the Neue Zeitung newspaper, founded by Kästner in Munich in 1945, and an open book with the author's biographical details and the motto "There is nothing good unless you do it." A biographical and literary connection to the site is created by a block bearing the words "And I myself, whatever I became, always remained one, a child of Königsbrücker Straße" (1977) and a framed childhood picture as a reference to Kästner's Dresden childhood, which he documented in "When I was a little boy" (1957). The sculpture was created in 1987, before the establishment of the Kästner Museum (1999), and can be considered the first memorial to Erich Kästner in Dresden.” (Erich-Kästner-Denkmal, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden)

The Fantomatik Orchestra

---

The Fantomatik Orchestra
Via Palazzuolo
Florence, December 2024

“The Fantomatik Orchestra is a musical project born in Tuscany in 1993 as a funky, soul and rhythm'n'blues group, with ethnic, pop and dance influences. In 2001 the band took an important turn: the stage group became a marching band, in the style of American street bands. The band, composed of more than 14 musicians, immediately managed to impose itself on public attention also thanks to the choice to constantly renew its repertoire by seeking new sounds and new ideas. Over the years the Fantomatik Orchestra has played on the streets and on the stages of many Italian and international capitals; it has introduced concerts of great artists, has participated in broadcasts, theatrical and cinematographic events, developing an original identity, which makes it resemble neither the traditional village band, nor the classic street band or American marching band.” (The Fantomatik Orchestra)

Svatý Václav

---

Svatý Václav (Saint Wenceslas) by Vincenc Vosmík, 1906
Ke Hradu, Malá Strana
Prague, September 2024

“Wenceslaus I (Czech: Václav; c. 907 – 28 September 935), Wenceslas I or Václav the Good was the Prince (kníže) of Bohemia from 921 until his death, probably in 935. According to the legend, he was assassinated by his younger brother, Boleslaus the Cruel. His martyrdom and the popularity of several biographies gave rise to a reputation for heroic virtue that resulted in his sainthood. He was posthumously declared to be a king and patron saint of the Czech state. He is the subject of the well-known ‘Good King Wenceslas’ , a carol for Saint Stephen's Day.” (Wenceslaus I, Duke of Bohemia, Wikipedia)

The Whale Rib

---

The Whale Rib
Arco della Costa
Verona, May 2025

“Verona, the city of Romeo and Juliet, is mysteriously home to a centuries-old whalebone. The trouble is, Verona is located about 75 miles (120 km) from the sea, and no one is quite sure how it got there. The bone, believed to be a rib, hangs in the center of the medieval Arco della Costa (Arch of the Rib), the entry point between Verona's Piazza Erbe and Piazza dei Signori. It's been hanging there, suspended from an iron chain, since at least the 1700s, though some estimates suggest much longer, possibly since the 15th century. In the Middle Ages and Renaissance era, the walkway above the arch provided a safe passage for judges and magistrates between the city hall and their living quarters, so that they needn't associate with the common or ‘corrupt’ people below. This may be the ironic origin of the myth of the whalebone's magic: It's claimed that it will fall on the first innocent or truthful person to walk under the archway.” (Whale Bone of Arco della Costa, Atlas Obscura)

DuMont-Brunnen

---

DuMont-Brunnen ‘Zeitungsbrunnen’
DuMont Fountain (Newspaper Fountain) by Theo Heiermann, 1986
Hanns-Hartmann-Platz
Cologne, September 2024

“The DuMont fountain was erected in 1986 on Breite Straße at Hanns-Hartmann-Platz by Theo Heiermann in bronze and granite. It was sponsored by the publishing house DuMont donated on the occasion of its 100th anniversary. The fountain reflects motifs from the newspaper world: a street vendor, a reader engrossed in reading, and a girl folding a hat from a newspaper. Next to it, a sculpture of the founder and publisher of the Kölnische Zeitung Marcus DuMont (1784-1831) to the newspaper house. The sculptor himself has immortalized himself in a very Cologne way: At the edge of the fountain he has placed a 5-mark piece, a ‘Heiermann’, in the mosaic of a hand.” (DuMont Fountain, Stadt Köln)

Palazzo Porto in Piazza Castello

---

Palazzo Porto in Piazza Castello
Piazza Castello
Vicenza, May 2025

“The Palazzo Porto is a palace in Piazza Castello, Vicenza, northern Italy. It is one of two palazzi in the city designed by Andrea Palladio for members of the Porto family (the other is Palazzo Porto, for Iseppo Porto, in contrà Porti). Only two bays of it were ever built, beginning shortly after 1571. Why the patron, Alessandro Porto, did not continue with the project is not known. For completing the scheme, which was probably intended to have been seven bays wide, the Porto family's 15th-century case, still standing to the left of the great architectural torso, would have been incrementally demolished. The structure was completed after Palladio's death by Vincenzo Scamozzi. The project seems to have been initiated immediately following the publication in 1570 of Palladio's I quattro libri dell'architettura, in which its design does not appear.” (Palazzo Porto in Piazza Castello, Wikipedia)

Minerva-Brunnen

---

Minerva-Brunnen (Minerva Fountain) by Friedrich Schierholz, 1894
(1983 copy from the original, destroyed in 1944)
Römerberg, Altstadt
Frankfurt, September 2024

“The eastern part of the Römerberg is also called ‘Samstagsberg’ (Saturday Hill) because, in the 15th century, public court was held here every Saturday in the open air. Later, weekly markets were also held regularly at this location. In 1481, the first open well was built here. Its early existence is documented by a document relating to the house Zum Ullner. In 1750, the fountain was converted into a pump well, and the old well trough was replaced with a smaller one. Further changes took place in 1893/1894. Since then, the figure of the goddess Minerva has stood on the cornice of the fountain. She is considered a symbol of wisdom, warfare, the arts, and crafts. The sculptor Friedrich Schierholz created the design but was never able to complete the work. The sculptor Fritz Klimsch completed the figure and fountain. The figure of Minerva gives the fountain its current name. On her head, she wears a helmet, holds a spear in her left hand, and a shield in her right. The shield depicts the severed head of Medusa. Rococo reliefs adorn all four sides of the pillar. An inscription on the back reads: ‘Renovated 1887’. The Minerva Fountain was destroyed in the war in 1944 and removed from the Römerberg in 1951. A largely historically accurate replica was reinstalled in 1983.” (Minerva-Brunnen, Kunst im öffentlichen Raum Frankfurt)