Press releases

Accompanying Program for the Exhibition
“The Joys of This Earth: Dürer, Rubens, Goya—Horses in Art” Through
August 23

The Suermondt-Ludwig Museum invites art lovers and horse enthusiasts alike to explore and delve deeper into the themes of the exhibition “The Joys of This Earth: Dürer, Rubens, Goya—Horses in Art” through a diverse program of events.

As part of the Aachen World Championships Special—the City of Aachen’s cultural program for the 2026 World Equestrian Games—the SLM’s events highlight the close bond between humans and horses, whether as a status symbol, a source of labor, a leisure companion, or a cultural symbol.

The first highlight of the supporting program will take place this coming Sunday:

ARTIST TALK
Sun, June 21, 11:00 a.m.

Artist Marcel Walldorf in conversation with Prof. Dr. Röcken, head of the Department of Equine Medicine (Surgery) with a teaching stable at Justus Liebig University in Giessen, on the connection between art, medicine, and elite sports.

As part of the current exhibition, an artist talk will be held with sculptor Marcel Walldorf and Prof. Dr. Röcken, director of the Equine Clinic. Walldorf, currently a visiting scholar at the Bauhaus University in Weimar, explores social structures and the relationship between humans and animals in his work. His works combine precision with subtle subversion, offering new perspectives on social dynamics and cultural conventions. Some of these works are currently on view in the exhibition at the Suermondt-Ludwig Museum.

In a conversation with Prof. Dr. Röcken, selected works by Walldorf will be discussed in depth, including *Hope I–III*, which illustrates the connection between art, medicine, and elite equestrian sports and explores the tensions between care, pressure to perform, and control.

Walldorf’s works use animals as a mirror of humanity and explore projections of strength, instinct, and civilization. Oscillating between humorous subversion and melancholic depth, they highlight social tensions and ethical questions.

Host: Wibke Birth

Other Event Highlights (Selected):

In the lecture hall of the Suermondt-Ludwig Museum.

No registration required, free of charge!

LECTURE
Thu, July 23, 6:00 p.m.

The Art of Photographing Horses.

Featuring Diane Bliessen, EquineArt, and Photography

Diane Bliessen views horses as companions, teachers, and mirrors of the soul. Born out of a lifelong connection with horses, her photographs reflect a special sensitivity to the animals’ expression, movement, and personality.

The focus is on capturing that one moment when the essence of a horse becomes visible—beyond staging or technique. With patience, trust, and a trained eye, photographs emerge that not only reveal the horse’s outward form but also tell an inner story.

A lecture on the art of seeing—and on how closeness, respect, and perception give rise to images that move us.

Moderation: Wibke Birth

PANEL TALK

Do 30.07., 18.00 Uhr

Happiness on Earth? – A Critical Look at Our Treatment of Horses

A conversation with Tina Srowig, the WDR Instagram channel "Die mit den Pferden," and other guests

The talk explores the relationship between humans and horses, examining the gap between the ideal and everyday reality. The WDR Instagram channel “Die mit den Pferden” offers insights into everyday life with horses, covers major sporting events such as the CHIO in Aachen, and sheds light on the structures of equestrian sports. At the same time, it also addresses critical topics such as animal welfare, training practices, psychological aspects, and social issues related to diversity and sustainability. Against this backdrop, the discussion explores how responsibility, public perception, and emotional bonds shape our interactions with horses today, and to what extent these aspects also play a role in artistic depictions of horses.

Moderation: Wibke Birth

ARTIST TALK

So 02.08., 11.00 Uhr

Artist Talk with Prof. Wolfgang Binding and Andreas Petzold, Galerie am Elisengarten

The artist Wolfgang Binding, professor emeritus of sculpture at RWTH Aachen University, is one of the region’s most influential figurative sculptors. His works combine realistic observation with an expressive, condensed formal language that stems from direct studies of nature and is rendered in bronze.

As part of the Artist Talk, the work of Aachen-based sculptor Wolfgang Binding will be presented and contextualized in a conversation with his gallerist, Andreas Petzold.

The focus of the exhibition includes, among other things, works in public spaces, such as St. George (Aachen Brand Police Headquarters) and the sculpture group “Playing Horses,” which welcomes visitors to the equestrian tournament at the entrance to the CHIO grounds in Aachen’s Soers district.

Host: Wibke Birth

BOOK PRESENTATION

Thu, Aug. 13, 6:00 p.m.

A Language of Love—On Interspecies Communication Between Horses and Humans and Its Intersections with Psychoanalytic Theory and Clinical Practice

Dr. Loretta Würtenberger and Hubertus Graf Zedtwitz will present their book *A Language of Love* and discuss their cultural-historical and personal explorations of the centauric pact between horse and human.

This publication, which draws on personal experiences with horses, reveals surprising connections to concepts in psychoanalysis and developmental psychology.

Empathetic interspecies communication between humans and animals requires certain fundamental conditions that are also crucial for successful therapeutic relationships: the establishment of a trusting relationship in a safe space, as well as the ability to communicate in a way that goes beyond the “mere exchange of words” and is thus capable of deciphering the unspeakable, the enigmatic, and the encapsulated trauma.

Host: Sarvenaz Ayooghi

The complete schedule of events (summer vacation courses, adult workshops, concerts, guided tours) is included in the attachment.

Suermondt-Ludwig Museum
, Wilhelmstr. 18,
52070 Aachen
, Tel. +49 241
47980-40info@suermondt-ludwig-museum.de

Hours of Operation
: Tue–Wed 1:00 p.m.–5:00 p.m
.; Thu–Sun 10:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m.