Swiss Toni
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A Canvas for Nature as Artist
The other museum: the Auto Sculpture Park in the Neander Valley
By Janine Albrecht
Parked and never driven another meter. That’s the fate of 50 classic cars from the year 1950. Not because they were no longer fit to drive, but because their owner had them put in his private park as art. He presents his treasures not polished to a high gloss. To the contrary: out in the open, unprotected, exposed to any kind of weather, the oldies slowly rot. “Nature is stronger than technology and that’s what I want to show here”, explains the auto designer and artist Michael Fröhlich. The merciless process of corrosion and the inexorable power of nature to prevail everywhere is supposed to offer the observer the chance to see things more clearly – without being distracted by chrome and paint.
So with the Auto Sculpture Park in the Neander Valley he has created a special kind of museum. But isn’t it a disgrace to simply let these vehicles to go to seed? For it’s not a junkyard, in which autos are intentionally destroyed. Rather the auto hobbyist has prepared a last parking place for the oldies.
East-West Conflict of the States
Most of the vehicles were placed in the scene in a stage setting matching the spirit of their time, or they symbolize the political changes of the states of that time by the presentation untypical for a vehicle. Hence, for example, he has put a piece of the Berlin Wall on display to show the normal setting of a Stasi-car from the DDR. On the other side of the wall stands an authentic Mercedes Benz from the early days of the Federal Republic of West Germany.
And to show the collapse of the Soviet Union, the artist half buried a Moskovitch from Russia – of course built in 1950. The downfall of the DDR is indicated by a tree growing through an AWZ, predecessor of the Trabbi – symbol of the dependency of mankind. And the collection does not lack an American US Army jeep. The collector ferreted out this war vehicle, which had been dropped over Korea with a parachute, in Switzerland.
With his passion for collecting, the Berlin-born artist developed a true hunting instinct. “I had finally found an ad for a 1950 Citroen II CV, the well know gangster car of that time, but when I called the car had just been sold,” relates Fröhlich , as angry as if he had just had the phone conversation. “But I was able to wheedle the number of the buyer out of the old owner.” He called the buyer right away and offered him more money for the coveted piece. But the man didn’t want to give up the car. But Fröhlich stuck to his guns, and hounded him for months, finally offering twice the purchase price – 14,000 marks – without success. Finally the secret came out why the buyer didn’t yield in spite of the lucrative profit: “In the meantime he had completely disassembled the car because he thought that because I wanted the car so much, there must be something valuable hidden in it,” learned the auto collector. After the buyer couldn’t find anything, the “hunter” finally got his prize.
Cars from the whole world
For his collection the millionaire looked all over the world and thus found a many-faceted mixture. While some of the vehicles still strongly reminded one of prewar models, many designs developed at that time were also pregnant with future ideas.
In the USA cars were built “big", and who doesn’t remember the Buick? The elegant street-cruiser, symbol of prosperity to Americans. “With the purchase of a Buick I really had a bad conscience,” remembers Fröhlich. A student had taken years to lovingly restore the Ami-sled, “and I knew that it would now rot in the park,” said Fröhlich in a subdued manner. “But I simply had to have it and really hadn’t found any other,” was his defense. The student later called him, bitterly angry over the fate of his Buick.
Cemetery or the Dwelling of the Past?
With each vehicle the museum owner told a special story, which gave the visitor an interesting tour. But not everyone can appreciate his kind of art and Fröhlich was also happy to talk to shocked auto lovers. The Auto Park had already been called “cemetery” and “mausoleum”. But are the vehicles really dead? “They were symbols of prosperity and now they’re no longer worth anything,” according to artist Fröhlich. “I have given Nature as Artist a display screen and now they still live.” Fröhlich freely admits the provocation that lurks behind his idea. He wants to make people who are open to his sculptures reflective.
A Canvas for Nature as Artist
The other museum: the Auto Sculpture Park in the Neander Valley
By Janine Albrecht
Parked and never driven another meter. That’s the fate of 50 classic cars from the year 1950. Not because they were no longer fit to drive, but because their owner had them put in his private park as art. He presents his treasures not polished to a high gloss. To the contrary: out in the open, unprotected, exposed to any kind of weather, the oldies slowly rot. “Nature is stronger than technology and that’s what I want to show here”, explains the auto designer and artist Michael Fröhlich. The merciless process of corrosion and the inexorable power of nature to prevail everywhere is supposed to offer the observer the chance to see things more clearly – without being distracted by chrome and paint.
So with the Auto Sculpture Park in the Neander Valley he has created a special kind of museum. But isn’t it a disgrace to simply let these vehicles to go to seed? For it’s not a junkyard, in which autos are intentionally destroyed. Rather the auto hobbyist has prepared a last parking place for the oldies.
East-West Conflict of the States
Most of the vehicles were placed in the scene in a stage setting matching the spirit of their time, or they symbolize the political changes of the states of that time by the presentation untypical for a vehicle. Hence, for example, he has put a piece of the Berlin Wall on display to show the normal setting of a Stasi-car from the DDR. On the other side of the wall stands an authentic Mercedes Benz from the early days of the Federal Republic of West Germany.
And to show the collapse of the Soviet Union, the artist half buried a Moskovitch from Russia – of course built in 1950. The downfall of the DDR is indicated by a tree growing through an AWZ, predecessor of the Trabbi – symbol of the dependency of mankind. And the collection does not lack an American US Army jeep. The collector ferreted out this war vehicle, which had been dropped over Korea with a parachute, in Switzerland.
With his passion for collecting, the Berlin-born artist developed a true hunting instinct. “I had finally found an ad for a 1950 Citroen II CV, the well know gangster car of that time, but when I called the car had just been sold,” relates Fröhlich , as angry as if he had just had the phone conversation. “But I was able to wheedle the number of the buyer out of the old owner.” He called the buyer right away and offered him more money for the coveted piece. But the man didn’t want to give up the car. But Fröhlich stuck to his guns, and hounded him for months, finally offering twice the purchase price – 14,000 marks – without success. Finally the secret came out why the buyer didn’t yield in spite of the lucrative profit: “In the meantime he had completely disassembled the car because he thought that because I wanted the car so much, there must be something valuable hidden in it,” learned the auto collector. After the buyer couldn’t find anything, the “hunter” finally got his prize.
Cars from the whole world
For his collection the millionaire looked all over the world and thus found a many-faceted mixture. While some of the vehicles still strongly reminded one of prewar models, many designs developed at that time were also pregnant with future ideas.
In the USA cars were built “big", and who doesn’t remember the Buick? The elegant street-cruiser, symbol of prosperity to Americans. “With the purchase of a Buick I really had a bad conscience,” remembers Fröhlich. A student had taken years to lovingly restore the Ami-sled, “and I knew that it would now rot in the park,” said Fröhlich in a subdued manner. “But I simply had to have it and really hadn’t found any other,” was his defense. The student later called him, bitterly angry over the fate of his Buick.
Cemetery or the Dwelling of the Past?
With each vehicle the museum owner told a special story, which gave the visitor an interesting tour. But not everyone can appreciate his kind of art and Fröhlich was also happy to talk to shocked auto lovers. The Auto Park had already been called “cemetery” and “mausoleum”. But are the vehicles really dead? “They were symbols of prosperity and now they’re no longer worth anything,” according to artist Fröhlich. “I have given Nature as Artist a display screen and now they still live.” Fröhlich freely admits the provocation that lurks behind his idea. He wants to make people who are open to his sculptures reflective.
