The aim if EuBrand was to shed light on a forgotten chapter of Europe’s intellectual and artistic history based on the following research question: how did painting contribute to the creation of a visual language of absolutism during the reign of the first Prussian king Frederick I?
EuBrand should foster research and innovation by combining historical enquiry and augmented reality technology. At the very beginning of its life as a Nation State, Brandenburg Prussia, and Berlin in particular, experienced the afflux of immigrants artists and masters, fleeing France after the revocation of the Edict of Nantes (22 October 1685). Their presence in Berlin would change forever the city from a productive, social, artistic and aesthetic point of view. Brandenburg had never had before inborn artists. The first ones become visible only after the Huguenots' migration. One of them is the first Berlin-born painter and etcher Johann Friedrich Wentzel (1670-1729), whom Frederick I King in Prussia commissioned the monumental ceiling frescos of the newly transformed Berlin Castle. So the project should emphasizes the importance of migration and movements of people across Europe in the creation of an iconography of absolutism functional to Frederick’s dynastic project. Wentzel’s personal and artistic trajectory is exemplary in this respect. His activity at the castle will provide the basis for an innovative app for visitors of the newly inaugurated Humboldt Forum, highlighting the forgotten layers of Brandenburg’s history behind one of the major landmark of today’s Berlin.
Last but not least EuBrand should contribute to the ongoing debate on the restitution of the Berlin’s castle, allowing a better understanding of the site. It contributes to the denationalization of German historiography and meets the need for accessibility and engaging story-telling in cultural heritage by exploiting the potential of the digital transition for research and curatorial purposes.
Unfortunately, the researchers was not able to carry out any project work due to severe family issues and the project must be early terminated after a lon period of suspnsion.
