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I couldn't say how many times I've walked this path in the last ten years. It stretches for over three kilometers from our house through the agricultural landscape typical of eastern Mecklenburg to the end of the village lake. Most of the time, it was simply the walk to the lake, taken alone, with a partner, or with friends. For relaxation, for reflection, for a bit of exercise. Or to observe the vastly different moods of light throughout the seasons: an almost seamless white of sky and snow-covered earth in the winter fog, dramatic cloud formations before a thunderstorm, or an almost unreal twilight blue.



I noticed the flora and fauna along the path without looking closely or studying them in any detail. Eventually, I did ask myself what I was actually seeing. Why did I recognize many of the animal species I encountered here, but only a small fraction of the plants growing along the path? This gradually gave rise to the idea of ​​creating a photographic inventory of this familiar area over an extended period. Alongside this, I began identifying the existing animal and plant life using traditional field guides, apps, and internet research.



The shift from casual observation to focused observation constantly revealed new potential aspects of my project. Each hike brought further discoveries, and along with the astonishment at the unexpectedly high number of species came the realization that much would remain hidden from me. An encyclopedic approach to my project was illusory. Everything I could depict and name would point to the inevitable incompleteness of such an undertaking. Even though I extended this work from the originally planned one year to four, it can therefore only offer a glimpse into the inexhaustible whole.



Thirty-three black-and-white photographs of the path now form the basis of this work. They convey an impression of the character and topography of this Ice Age-shaped landscape, as well as the nature of its economic use. These are complemented by five color photographs that reflect the changing light and weather throughout the seasons. Studying the flora along the path resulted in 128 photographs of blossoms, 29 photographs of plants, and 25 images of leaves from the trees and shrubs in this area. Representing the wildlife, my brother, Martin Schink, created colored drawings of all 82 bird species observed. My book, *Am Weg* (On the Path), published in 2025 by Hartmann Books, contains not only this extensive visual material but also lists of the recorded animal and plant species and a literary text by the poet and writer Uwe Kolbe.

On behalf of the artist, the art collection, and the Romantic House, we cordially invite you and your friends to the opening of the exhibitions on Friday, December 5, 2025, at 7 p.m.!




The starry sky has always been fascinating. The view into space, which is full of secrets and possibilities, has motivated humanity for many centuries to unravel the phenomena hidden within it. Artist Hiroyuki Masuyama (*1968 in Tsukuba, Japan) approaches his work with the relentless curiosity of a researcher, devoting himself to the universe with the same passion he brings to a mundane patch of grass outside his front door.




Hiroyuki Masuyama's lightboxes exude a peculiar magic. Like radiant windows to a strange world, they shine into the exhibition space and instinctively draw viewers into their spell. Their motifs appear familiar, however, as they depict well-known paintings by the Romantic artist Caspar David Friedrich, reproduced by Masuyama as seemingly realistic photographs.

ÜBER LAND
Museum of Fine Arts Leipzig
27 November 2025 to 1 March 2026








Hans-Christian Schink (born in Erfurt in 1961) is one of the most renowned photographic artists of our time. His series ‘Verkehrsprojekte Deutsche Einheit’ (German Unity Transport Projects) and ‘1h’, which broke new ground in black-and-white photography, made photographic history. As part of his projects, he travelled, lived and photographed our planet from Spitsbergen to Antarctica, from Machu Picchu to Kochi.

Under the title Über Land (Over Land), the MdbK is showing Schink's latest group of works. This time, the subject of the work is the landscape in the far north-east of Germany, which the photographer illuminates from different perspectives in three different sub-projects: Hinterland, Unter Wasser (Under Water) and Am Weg (On the Way). From an artistic point of view, Über Land is a multi-layered, contemporary examination of the influential tradition of European and North American landscape depictions – especially Romanticism. At the same time, the work stands at the interface of current social debates about the overexploitation of the landscape, the associated loss of biodiversity and the effects of these processes on people's experience of nature.


Wednesday, 25 February, 6 p.m
Hans-Christian Schink. Über Land (Across Country)
Conversation in the exhibition with references to works from the collection with Hans-Christian Schink and curators Philipp Freytag and Jan Nicolaisen.
Admission: €5 / €2.50, no registration required.

WIELAND PAYER
QUEST

27 September to 22 November 2025
Galerie Rothamel Erfurt

We cordially invite you and your friends to an artist talk with handmade artist quiche and exquisite quince punch this coming Saturday, November 8, at 6 p.m.

Art Karlsruhe 2026
4. bis 8. Februar

We present works by

Hjördis Baacke
Moritz Götze
Hiroyuki Masuyama
Dana Meyer
Nguyen Xuan Huy
Hans-Christian Schink
Thitz




You can find a preview of our program below.



In 2010, photographer Hans-Christian Schink embarked on a trip around the world, spending two weeks in Antarctica. The pictures he took there with an analog camera are full of devotion to the monumental and elemental nature of the landscape. Schink's large-format landscapes appear so sober, so pure, and so grandiose in their silence and vastness that they take your breath away. 
(From a text by Katrin Bettina Müller)

 
In 2025, Nguyen Xuan Huy created his painting “Mission Phoenix.” We are exhibiting it for the first time in Karlsruhe. In ancient Greece and Egypt, the phoenix was considered a legendary eagle-like bird that burst into flames at the end of its long life and left behind an egg in the ashes, from which it hatched again. The peacock-like mythical creature Fenghuang, associated with fire, is referred to as the “Chinese phoenix.” 

Nguyen Xuan Huy layers the different aspects of the phoenix concept into a monumental painting with numerous allusions: the Nike of Samothrace, a sculpture now kept in the Louvre, represents ancient Greece, while charred roof beams are reminiscent of the devastating fire at Notre-Dame de Paris in 2019.

For painter, illustrator, sculptor, and photographer Hiroyuki Masuyama, time travel is more than just a fictional possibility. It brings him into contact with fellow artists from the past and with exhibition guests from the future.

Masuyama particularly enjoys visiting the era of European Romanticism. Using hundreds of photographs, he recomposes the works of the great masters and allows us to experience their fascination anew in a contemporary form. He encounters Joseph Mallord William Turner in Venice, Rome, and London. He appears in Caspar David Friedrich's metaphysical worldviews.



Moritz Götze is one of the most important pop art artists of our time. His warm-hearted and alert works enchant viewers with their unique aura. 

He is currently embarking on a new series of large-scale works. “At my age,” says Moritz Götze (born 1964), “it's time to start exploring myths.” Myth (ancient Greek: narrative) links human existence with the world of gods, spirits, and supernatural forces. The artist combines retrospection with prophecy and erects beacons on the shores of the present to guide the course toward the future.



Shopping bags are both a reflection of our culture and cultural artifacts. Thitz recycles them in his works and paints over them with fantastic cityscapes. He creates grandiose utopias full of astonishing details and ironic allusions. Shopping bags may soon be a thing of the past. That's the way things go. This gives Thitz's paintings a new dimension: in addition to their intrinsic value as coveted art objects, they also gain the aura of irretrievable historical artifacts. The artist's works can be found in numerous public and private collections around the world.



Hjördis Baacke is new to our program. She paints forests. Her works are realistic, yet full of fascinating moments, with a special focus on light, which sometimes gives her canvases an impressive effect. Every forest has its own character, its own personality, and Baacke's forest paintings are, so to speak, unmistakable portraits.

Hjördis Baacke (born in Leipzig in 1980) studied painting at the HGB under Arno Rink and Neo Rauch. She wrote her thesis in 2007 in the field of philosophy on the topic “The Forest as a Promise” under Christoph Türcke. The artist has received various art prizes and awards. Hjördis Baacke lives in Leipzig.

We look forward to your visit!

Am Weg (Along the Path)
Book launch at Paris Photo. Book signing November 14, 2025, 4:30pm at Hartmann Books (Booth K10).
Preorder here: Book or Special edition with book

The exhibition "Microcosm. The World in a Wunderkammer" has opened at the Drentsmuseum Assen.
On display are my "South Pacific Expedition" and the works "The Zebra," "The Deer," and "The Crocodile."

The exhibition is on display until March 1, 2026. It's well worth a visit!

Under the title "Über Land," the MdbK is presenting the latest series of works by renowned photo artist Hans-Christian Schink (*1961 Erfurt). The subject of the work is the landscape of the far northeast of Germany, which the photographer illuminates from different perspectives in three different sub-projects. From a visual perspective, "Über Land" is a multifaceted, contemporary exploration of the influential tradition of European and North American landscape depictions—particularly Romanticism. At the same time, the work sits at the intersection of current social debates about the transformation of the landscape in the wake of climate and structural change, the associated loss of biodiversity, and the impacts of these processes on people's experience of nature.

While his projects over the past 20 years have taken him to the most remote corners of the world, Hans-Christian Schink has been concentrating for the past few years on his immediate surroundings in the Mecklenburg Lake District. This region – shaped by the last Ice Age – is extremely sparsely populated and, more recently, characterized by increasingly industrialized agriculture. In addition to his intensive photographic engagement with the landscape, his latest work combines a natural history interest in the flora and fauna, as well as an exploration of the history of the landscape (both geological and human-made). The artist was guided by two fundamental questions: What defines this landscape, and how can its character be captured photographically, but also through other forms of expression?

Two of the three subprojects of Über Land (Hinterland and Unter Wasser) have already been published as books by Hartmann Books. On the occasion of the exhibition opening, the third subproject, Am Weg (On the Way), will also be published, featuring an essay by poet and writer Uwe Kolbe that captures the peculiarities of the place on a literary level.

Art Karlsruhe 2025
20. bis 23. Februar

Our stand will be located in Hall 1 at position A 26.

We are looking forward to your visit!

Kind regards
Jörk Rothamel

The longing for stories is back. For us, the current edition of Art Karlsruhe 2025 is all about narrative, storytelling art: painting, photography, sculpture and ceramics. All of the artists presented are masters of the means of their respective medium and convey substantial content in their works. The narratives are extraordinarily multifaceted, reach deep into art history and are at the same time highly topical.

We present works by

Jörg Ernert
Grita Götze
Moritz Götze 
Hiroyuki Masuyama
Nguyen Xuan Huy
Wieland Payer
Hans Christian Schink
Thitz

Hall 1 / A 26
 
Karlsruhe Trade Fair Center, Messeallee 1, 76287 Rheinstetten, Germany
+49 177 599 84 45
 

VIP  Preview on Wednesday, February 19 from 1 to 8 pm
 
Regular opening hours

Thursday to Saturday: 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday: 11 am to 6 pm.

Dear friends,

A truly rich year full of events and twists and turns lies behind us and there are reasons to be grateful.

Jörg Ernert kicked off the year in our Frankfurt gallery at Fahrgasse 17 with his wonderful show “Traghetto”, which focused on Venice and the city's artists.

Jörg Ernert in Frankfurt

A few days later, the Gemäldegalerie of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin presented the first works of art from the holdings of the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in Odessa. The museum's most important works were brought to safety immediately after the outbreak of war and subsequently to Berlin, a process in which our gallery played a small part. However, the presentation in January 2024 was only a small foretaste. The major exhibition with all the rescued works will be on display from January 24 to June 22, 2025.

Museum of Western and Eastern Art, Odessa

In 2024, we celebrated Caspar David Friedrich's 250th birthday. Many contemporary artists have explored this great role model, but probably none as intensively as Hiroyuki Masuyama. Consequently, Masuyama was in great demand this year: he exhibited at the Hamburger Kunsthalle, the Bundesrat, the Alte Nationalgalerie and the Pommersches Landesmuseum in Friedrich's hometown of Greifswald. And of course with us.

Hiroyuki Masuyama, Bundesrat

Romanticism in Artificial Light, Erfurt

With the Erfurt show “Romanticism in Artificial Light”, we stuck to the theme and showed works by Jörg Ernert, Moritz Götze, Hiroyuki Masuyama, Nguyen Xuan Huy, Wieland Payer, Marten Schädlich, Hans-Christian Schink and Raïssa Venables.

In Frankfurt, we took up the context once again under the title “Mixed Devotions” - and at the end of June we had to finally leave the space we had occupied since 2005. The owner had sold the property to a “creative agency”, which is still not using it today. 

Mixed Devotions, Frankfurt

In the summer there was a short intermezzo in the space of the neighboring Galerie Schwind (“Across the River and into the Trees” with Hjördis Baacke, Thorsten Groetschel,

Dana Meyer and Wieland Payer) and so the long chapter in the gallery's history in Frankfurt seemed to come to an end after 19 years and 153 exhibitions. Since 2005, Fahrgasse had grown into a functioning gallery biotope with great colleagues and a great team spirit, and I left with regret and gratitude.

Across the River and into the Trees, Frankfurt

Nevertheless, the new situation was perfectly fine for me personally, because the Erfurt gallery, our family, a still open building site and various art fairs offered more than enough to keep me busy. For the gallery's artists, the situation turned out to be less welcome, because fewer exhibitions naturally mean lower sales. And somehow... it also felt strange for me to be standing on one leg.

Reuterweg 71, Frankfurt

A message had already arrived from Barbara von Stechow on July 2, a photo of a shop window with a telephone number. At the end of the summer, I looked into the matter.A former savings bank in Frankfurt's Westend, on the corner of Reuterweg and Grüneburgweg, charming but challenging. Super nice landlords. Without further ado, I threw all my plans overboard and accepted.It turned out to be a forced move. My son gave up his autumn vacation together, my family showed understanding and Constance Rothamel and Grant Morton supported the project with all their might.It was touch and go several times, but then everything worked out

It opened on October 9, with highlights from the gallery program and a lavish party.The floor is new, but further renovation work and professional lighting are still pending.

Frankfurt Opening

Setup in Luxembourg, with Hiroyuki Masuyama


In November, the small Erfurt “artthuer” took place, an artists' fair that is actually taboo for a gallery, but out of local solidarity and sympathy for Michaela Hirche from VbK and her great work, we took part. It was again very entertaining and informal, but the real focus was on Luxembourg Art Week, which started two weeks later. That too is now history and Art Karlsruhe 2025 opens on February 19 - you are already cordially invited!

Art Karlsruhe, 2024

Art Karlsruhe, 2024


Finally, elections will be held on February 23 and I have a small hope that the problems of this country might finally be tackled. If our professional politicians continue to fail, we should switch from the electoral system to the lottery system (which has proven itself some times in the history of democracies).

But first things first: On behalf of all our artists and fellow campaigners, I wish you and your loved ones a relaxing and reflective Christmas and all the very best for the New Year 2025 - health, happiness, success, love and peace!

Our first exhibition in the new year starts in Frankfurt on Friday, January 17, 2025 at 6 pm. We are showing works by Hiroyuki Masuyama and cordially invite you to join us. The artist will be present and we look forward to seeing you again.

Sincerely
Yours, Jörk Rothamel

Already firmly planned for 2025: the annual Easter hike with Grita and Moritz Götze.

From December 23rd to January 5th we will be on Christmas vacation and our galleries will be closed.