Restoration is an integral part of my artistic practice.
It is a field where craftsmanship, historical research and ethical responsibility meet.
I work with paintings, wall paintings, sculptural elements,and ecclesiastical interiors. In restoration, my goal is not to add a modern interpretation, but to carefully understand and preserve the original work. Each project requires studying historical sources, analyzing materials and respecting established conservation principles.
For me, restoration is an opportunity to touch the past: to sense the mastery of artists who worked before us, and to recognize that through this encounter, we sometimes discover something essential about ourselves.
Since 2016, I have been working as a conservator at the Kunstarchiv Beeskow, contributing to the preservation, documentation and study of historical artworks and cultural heritage.
Approach and Philosophy
Sacral and historical objects are never isolated artifacts.
They exist within architectural, social and spiritual contexts shaped by centuries of use, change and reinterpretation.
My restoration approach is based on:
- respect for original material and craftsmanship
- minimal and reversible intervention
- careful differentiation between preservation and reconstruction
- transparency of historical layers rather than their elimination
Where reconstruction is necessary, it is undertaken only when supported by reliable evidence. Speculative completion is consciously avoided. The goal is not visual perfection, but historical integrity and continuity.
Restoration Projects
Church in Tauche – Restoration of the Baroque Pulpit Altar
The pulpit altar of the church in Tauche is a complex ensemble shaped by multiple historical phases. Research and structural evidence revealed that the altar was reassembled around 1770 using components from the church in Kossenblatt.
Beneath later monochrome overpainting, extensive original figurative painting was uncovered on the pulpit basket and flanking altar walls. These include depictions of the Evangelists, Moses with the Tablets of the Law, and a seated patron figure—identified with high probability as Johann Albrecht Kyrass von Barfuß.
A particularly significant discovery was the fragmented panel painting of The Last Supper, concealed within the altar structure. Eleven painted wooden boards were recovered, analyzed and reassembled into an almost square composition. The painting relates iconographically to early 17th-century engraved sources and retains strong theological coherence despite substantial losses.
The restoration focused on stabilizing original material, uncovering and conserving historic paint layers, and making the altar’s complex history legible without reducing it to a single moment in time.
Church in Görsdorf – Restoration of the Pulpit, Altar and Organ
The church interior in Görsdorf had suffered severe damage during the final days of World War II and from prolonged woodworm infestation. Earlier restoration attempts left structural and aesthetic issues unresolved.
The project involved conservation of wooden structures, treatment of woodworm damage, reconstruction of missing elements, and restoration of the original polychromy. The altar paintings—The Baptism of Christ, The Resurrection of Christ and The Last Supper—were cleaned, stabilized and carefully retouched, preserving original paint layers wherever possible.
All interventions followed established conservation ethics, avoiding unnecessary alteration and emphasizing material authenticity.
Church in Krügersdorf – Restoration of the Polychrome Wooden Pulpit Altar (1722–1724)
This project included the cleaning and conservation of the entire pulpit altar, gilding of ornamental elements, restoration of carved wooden figures, and reconstruction of missing architectural details.
Stucco work and the restoration of original stenciled painting were carried out in close accordance with historical evidence, ensuring visual coherence while maintaining the altar’s original character.
Additional Projects
2016 – Restoration of the pulpit in the church in Giesensdorf, Brandenburg, Germany.
2011 – Restoration and gilding of the inscription panel “Deo et Ecclesiae” above the entrance of the parish house in Beeskow.
2009–2010 – Restoration of the organ case of the village church in Hohenwalde, Germany.