Undine

In a relatively still section of the Lippe, a green vortex appears in the water at intervals. Without a discernible external cause, it suddenly forms on the surface and the water slowly turns bright green. As the vortex grows more powerful, the light’s intensity increases. Then, the vortex slowly calms down again and the green glow fades out. After a short pause, the light and movement return, but now as a noisy bubbling geyser.

Undine is like a magical green eye that glows in the river for a short time, summons the wanderer to the water, and lures him into the depths with its silent spinning; it evokes that which is hidden and awakens it in the observer. The depth and darkness of the river allow the glowing vortex to be visible for a moment; it becomes a poetic threshold, the illumination of a mysterious “black hole” that leads us into the depths and draws us in like the mythical water creature after which Claudia Schmacke named her installation.

Near Lippstadt’s city center, this artwork invites you to linger at leisure, to contemplate and reflect. In its special way, Claudia Schmackes’ work accentuates the significance of the river as a namesake, as a “river of remembrance,” as a natural and mythical resource of city life beyond the pragmatics of everyday life.

Text: Dirk Raulf (Curator)

Additional information: www.lippstadt.de/kultur/kultur/Lichtpromenade.php