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It is probably clear that churches are a favorite painting subject for me. They can of course be architecturally interesting. The centuries old ones all have intriguing histories. And sometimes, such as with this one, they can represent the compositional challenge we artists refer to as “a real booger to paint.”

This is St. Thomas Lutheran Church in Leipzig Germany. Let’s walk it through the above list.

Architecturally Interesting

This baby dates to the 1200s. The current “footprint” comes from the mid-1400s. It has been added on to; subtracted from; added on to again; changed from baroque to gothic; undoubtedly subject to fires, rot, and leaking roofs; provided with gas, electricity, and running water; lost its bell tower to aerial bombing during a little incident I like to call the Second World War; been rebuilt; suffered termites; and, of late, forced into a secondary occupation as tourist attraction as well as active parish. It looks different from every angle and incorporates stone, wood, brick, plaster, stained glass and so on and so forth – some installed centuries ago, some quite recent. For example, it has a beautiful stained glass window depicting the crucifixion, but you can’t help noticing the helmets of the Nazi soldiers on some of the figures at the foot of the cross, which makes an interesting statement given the church's location. So, yeah, it’s architecturally interesting.

            Intriguing History

Well, Martin Luther preached there, at least once. Johann Sebastian Bach spent the last two decades of his life being the musician there (and currently resides, or at least his earthly remains do, under a brass plate in the chancel). Mendelssohn played there. Mozart played there, again at least once. It was used to store ammunition by the French and as a military hospital by the Germans. Richard Wagner was baptized there. Its boys’ choir, the Thomanerchor, was founded in 1212 and is still going strong (although, of the founding members, only Keith Richards remains active). On a personal note, my wife Crystal, who is a church musician, played a recital on the Bach organ there in 2016. The Bach organ is new (1999/2000), but is designed to look and sound similar to those of Bach’s lifetime. For pipe organists, this is kind of a big gig.

            A Real Booger to Paint

Like many old European churches, St. Thomas is surrounded by old European city. Closely surrounded. Which means that it is difficult to get a good vantage point to choose for composition. You are either so close that there is no way to avoid foreshortening, or, if at a good distance, your view is blocked by other buildings or trees or some other obstruction. This side of the church is along a major street. The opposite side – the one with the bell tower and other visually interesting goodies – has a public square in front of it so it is possible to view it from pleasing angles. I may paint that side one day. This side, however, offers the challenge of only really being visible straight on, so that a single façade is all you can paint.  Like a child’s drawing of a house.  

This façade, however, is fascinating; it’s full of all kinds of different brick and stone and plaster and whatnot (see architecturally interesting above) but nonetheless just a façade. The 3^rddimension is not in play, hence it is a booger to paint. Or, better put, a booger to make interesting compositionally.

Side-bar: on a recent Antiques Roadshow, I saw a cool mid-20^thcentury Cuban painting of a church façade. It was whimsical and colorful and just broken down to shapes without no architectural detail given more than a single brushstroke. This was my goal for this painting. As pretty as the church is, a single façade is limiting, so why not go near-abstract and see what happens. Alas, even though I tend not to be a detail painter, this has way way way way way more detail than the Antiques Roadshow painting I hoped to emulate. Force of habit.

So, who knows?  Maybe I’ll try again sometime…