MUNICH, GERMANY -- I'm taking a one-month bicycle tour of Germany with the incentive of seeing the Carl von Marr painting "The Flagellants" displayed at the Haus der Kunst in Munich.
The painting is part of the museum's exhibit entitled "The Trial of Strength -- 200 years of The Academy of Fine Arts."
Marr went to school, taught and became the director of the academy and his painting is the centerpiece of the three month-exhibit featuring 90 works of art.
"It looks like a big Hollywood set," said one of the docents joking with conservator Tony Rajer who helped with the removal of the painting from the Museum of Wisconsin Art in West Bend, and traveled with the piece to Munich. Rajer spent the last two weeks rebuilding the spring frame and installing the 14 x 25-ft. painting.
"The single biggest revelation for Germans is they knew Carl von Marr, but they didn't know his work," said Rajer, impressed with how the painting looks so different wearing a simple red, wood frame and hung against a white wall of a gallery that has 30-ft. ceilings and is the size of a basketball court.
"Suddenly all the light colors pop out and you get the sense of people moving in space."
Rajer also praised the natural light from the skylights in the ceiling and gushed at how they mixed with the incandescent lights.
Hundreds attend exhibit premiere
The Haus der Kunst rolled out the red carpet for the exhibit; over 450 people attended the private premiere and 700 were at the public opening, including 150 journalists.
A lot of paintings in the exhibit show death, suffering, hard times and war.
"You see the painting of the death of Alexander the Great, the face of Alexander isn't finished, because the artist died," said Rajer of Karl von Piloty, who passed away leaving the Greek leader looking as if he had the face of a ghost.
Rajer also raved about the watercolors by Sophia Stryjenska. "She was in her 20s and came to the academy dressed as a man, with her brother's passport," said Rajer, explaining how the arts were designated a man's profession.
Two years into Stryjenska's schooling, her true identity was discovered and she was thrown out of the academy.
Another interesting tidbit includes the painting of a fight at sea between the Norwegians and the Swedish. The painting is on loan from the King of Norway.
As far as "The Flagellants" is concerned, Rajer said the painting takes up all the oxygen in the room. That room has 25-ft. high doorways with marble trim and marble flooring. "You're so close to the painting you can see Marr's technique and his colors are so sensuous it looks like he was painting with butter."
Judy is a Milwaukee native who is ever exploring the country. Her favorite mode of travel is her 21-speed, blue Centurion bicycle, which she bought after high school. Judy has worked in the local media for the past 20 years. "I need to do something to support my biking habit."
Judy has an extensive history in radio news, having worked at WISN, WUWM, WTMJ, WKTY in La Crosse and WBKV in West Bend. A strong interest in sports also had Judy reporting for ESPN Radio covering the Packers, Buck, Brewers and Badgers. "One of my first Brewer games at County Stadium the security guy yelled as I walked into the locker room LADY IN THE LOCKER ROOM. Now its so commonplace. But that story makes me sound really old."
Judy is currently working at WISN-TV in Milwaukee. She is a freelance writer and her pieces have been seen in The Small Business Times and The Business Journal. Her travel journal has appeared in Minnesota Trails Magazine, The Statesman and the West Bend Daily News, to name a few.
Aside from biking, running and being active in her community, Judy is known as someone who is "very, very thrifty." "I get candles for Christmas. My friends call them my space heaters because I normally keep the heat in my house at 40 degrees during the winter. Its not that I cant afford to turn up the thermostat, I just hate paying for heat."
Judy said her "conservative attitude" plays a part in her bike tours ... not needing to pay for gas and frequently spending nights camping inside churches. "First of all, it makes me feel safe since Im traveling alone and second all youre doing is sleeping, so why pay for that. Its no wonder I cant ever get someone to travel with me."
Judy grew up in Whitefish Bay and graduated from Dominican High School and the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Judy is the second oldest among seven siblings and spends a lot of her time working as a "park tester" along with her eight nieces and nephews.
