Art Calendar - 15 May 2022

Large Radschläger Statue in Düsseldorf

on the 100th Birthday of Friedrich Becker on 25 May 2022

Radschläger Installation in progress

©Michael Berger

On 25 May 2022, the avant-gardist, artist and inventor of kinetic jewellery, Friedrich Becker, would have turned 100. To mark this anniversary, a large Radschläger will be installed on the campus of the Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences, the largest to date in Düsseldorf.

Friedrich Becker was an extremely productive artist and one of the most ingenious jewellery designers in the world. Many of his installations can still be found in the cityscape of Düsseldorf and his jewellery creations are worn all over the world or shown in museums - this summer, for example, the exhibition Zum Spielen geboren will be shown in the Museum Deutsches Goldschmiedehaus Hanau.

The Radschläger

Everyone knows him - the Düsseldorfer Radschläger, designed in 1960. The Radschläger is a Düsseldorf sympathy symbol and stands for the close ties of the citizens to their city and moves their hearts.

His story

Movement meant everything to Friedrich Becker and he loved cheerfulness. The history of the Radschläger began with the mayor's chain of 1958, whose chain links are all small Radschlägers. The first Radschläger was then attached to the Lambertus Church in the Old Town on the night before Karfreitag 1960 by Friedrich Becker together with his wife Hilde. The pastor needed a new doorknob because the 'Pänz', a term for Düsseldorf children, had broken it. Friedrich Becker had worked on it for such a long time because, as usual, he had not been satisfied and the Radschläger was only finished in the middle of the night.

Prof. Friedrich Becker e.V.

The association "Prof. Friedrich Becker e.V." under the direction of Heike Kappes takes care of the continuation of his work. One very fruitful action was the development of small cycling club pins, of which the FiftyFifty street vendors sold 10,000 in the midst of the Corona era.

Another action was the production of limited edition 50 cm wheel beaters made of larch wood by the Workshop for Adapted Work. Offered through an online platform, all were sold within 3 days.

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The large Radschläger can be found

Campus of the Düsseldorf University of Applied Sciences

Münsterstrasse 156, 40476 Düsseldorf

In front of building 6

Learn more about the association

prof-friedrich-becker.com

Further dates

Zum Spielen geboren - Friedrich Becker

24 July to 16 October 2022

German Goldsmiths' House Hanau

Altstädter Markt 6, 63450 Hanau

goldschmiedehaus.com

Professor Friedrich Becker portrait

Photo: ©Privat

Fashion - 13 May 2022

Maison Valentino celebrated the 90th birthday of its founder Valentino Garavani on 11 May 2022 with two projects, a fashion production at the Theatre Sociale in Voghera and a Valentino hoodie with the words

 "I Love Beauty, It's Not My Fault".

Valentino Garavani - ©Maison Valentino

Read more