Exhibition Secrets of the Painters - Cologne in the Middle Ages

The wild beast bares its fangs in a fearful grimace, flames spurt from its maw and sparkling in its bloodshot eyes is a look of the purest evil. While the monster towers above the people in front, in reality this devil is just a detail, viewed through a microscope, from Stefan Lochner's Day of Judgement (c. 1435). This and other breath-taking sights are on show at the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in its forthcoming exhibition: Secrets of the Painters - Cologne in the Middle Ages. From 20 September 2013 till 9 February 2014, the famous masterpieces can be seen with fresh eyes.

For the first time the exhibition presents the fascinating findings that have been brought to light by a team of conservators, scientists and art historians in a project lasting several years. Like the hunt for clues in a criminal investigation, the researchers have used the latest equipment to analyse over thirty paintings that were all done some 600 years ago in Cologne. Apart from the originals, visitors will be able to study intriguing infra-red exposures and revealing x-ray images, as well as enormous blow-ups of details from the paintings, and even become acquainted with the painters' sophisticated tricks and methods in a reconstruction of a workshop. This modern presentation will be rounded off by digital animations, film clips, digressions on the materials and techniques, and a special children's circuit complete with interactive handbook.

Secrets of the Painters - Cologne in the Middle Ages
20 September 2013 - 9 February 2014
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(News Item 12 September 2013)