"...es steht alles sehr zweifelhaft auf dem Lande." Explorations in Wiepersdorf

Opening on Saturday, November 13, 2021, at 2 p.m. in the Museum im Mönchenkloster Jüterbog

Achim von Arnim (1781–1831) reports in his letters about his work as a farmer and landowner of Wiepersdorf. The art historian Dr. Iris Berndt, a fellow at Schloss Wiepersdorf, is inspired by this to search for traces and builds a bridge to the present. She researches and inquires, photographs and paints. Objects from the collection of the Jüterbog Museum complement the exhibition. The exhibition is about urgent questions of our handling of the natural riches in nature and landscape.

„Sey möglichst sparsam, es steht alles sehr zweifelhaft auf dem Lande.“

Thus wrote Achim von Arnim in April 1830 from Wiepersdorf to his wife Bettine in Berlin. Nine months later he was dead, and this sentence becomes a legacy in retrospect. From 1814 until his death in 1831, Achim von Arnim lived and farmed on his estates in the Bärwalde countryside and also spent most of his time in Wiepersdorf. He was not a trained farmer, but managed the economy from experience and in the ongoing acquisition of practical knowledge. In this way he secured the livelihood of his family in Berlin. The grandiose correspondence between Berlin and Wiepersdorf reflects all the difficulties of a long-distance relationship, of farming in the countryside, and the completely different views of town and country by the two spouses. Whether it is about harvest or drought, festivals or markets, the sheep pen, the freshly born calf or the beloved Borsdorf apples.

The changes since the times of Achim von Arnim are fundamental. The economic form and ownership structures have changed, climate change is manifesting itself with persistent periods of drought, and water is becoming a valuable commodity, especially here on the edge of the Niederer Fläming. Opinions differ on how to solve the problems. However, the historical research as well as the current discussions show that there have always been ways out and that very individual solutions can also be found for this region. Artistic and cultural explorations of the Ländchen reveal undreamed-of beauties of this remote area of the state of Brandenburg, which spur on more initiative and commitment.

Art historian, historian and author Dr. Iris Berndt's volume "Sächsisches Brandenburg" (2014) focused on the cultural features in the south of the state of Brandenburg and was a pioneering work. In 2019, she published "Brandenburgs schöner Süden. Wanderungen durch den Landkreis Elbe-Elster". She is a member of the Brandenburg Historical Commission.

In cooperation with the Museum im Mönchenkloster Jüterbog

Museum im Mönchenkloster
Mönchenkirchplatz 4
14913 Jüterbog

The museum is open during official hours under 2G rules.