Die Wirtin

Michael Schulze

Gerburg Treusch-Dieter

Sketch of ideas for the exhibit “The hostess” for the exhibition XENIA

"No hostess, no guest": this simple sentence is to be taken almost literally if one expands the "hostess figure" to its mythical dimension, which finally and finally in the goddess of life and death, as known from oriental and classical antiquity is, culminates, ie in a “life-giving” – and consequently also “life-taking” – female entity whose real model is not only the mother-child relationship, but also the man-woman relationship. The “guest” therefore refers to this inherently ambivalent female authority, bringing salvation and evil, not only as a “child” but also as a “man”. He is connected to her not only through a primary nurturing relationship, but also through an erotic relationship (a doubling of nurturing and lovemaking, which is expressed in myths, sagas, fairy tales, farcical and romantic stories, for example, by the fact that the "landlady" is enough aphrodisiacs).  

Concept, sketches and collages of the "layers" in the figure

   "the hostess" for the project "XENIA", 1985, each 21×29 cm