Daily Aesthetics

We've all asked the question at one time or another, "Is that art, or can we throw it away?" While one person is simply unable to appreciate an image or sculpture, another will stand before a work in awe and enjoy the sight. There's plenty of art to find on the University of Freiburg campus, too. In a creative way, the pieces present different facets of the university – sometimes in more obvious ways, others with more subtlety – artistically, so to speak. To mark International Art Appreciation Day on 9 August 2019, Theresa Scheible asked University of Freiburg students about how they feel about art and their favorite campus artworks. She also took her camera and recorded some of the favorites for posterity.

Asahi Suzuki, Sociology

"I like the two statues of Aristotle and Homer, that are in front of the Collegiate Building. They illustrate the university's relationship with knowledge. But I don't really have much daily exposure to art. My wife likes going to museums. When I go with her, I find some things interesting – but I don't go along very often."

Supriya Navale, Microsystems Engineering

"For a long time, I lived in the student village 'StuSie am Seepark.'" There are a few statutes between the buildings that I find attractive. I'm personally interested in things that are handmade, for example, such as greeting cards or flowers made of folded paper. I've often created gifts for my friends. With one of my girlfriends, I even set up a small start-up in India, which isn't active right now because I'm studying here. We received orders and made many gifts. Especially before Valentine's Day, we had lots of people making inquiries."

Anne Werminghausen, Medicine

"There's no particular work on campus that has struck me up to now. I enjoy going to art exhibitions in my free time. When I was a child, I didn't like it at all. I always had the feeling my parents were forcing me to do it. Now I go most often when I'm traveling – on trips to cities I go to the museum. I'm totally a fan of Mark Rothko. I used to paint myself, but I haven't done that for many years."

Rohan Ghosh, Microsystems Engineering

"I like doing portrait and landscape photography. It's a hobby for me. When I see a beautiful place, I take a picture of it. It doesn't have to be with a super-duper camera. I use my mobile phone as well. If I think the pictures are good enough, I'll put them on social media. At the university, I like the sculpture in Building 101 of the Faculty of Engineering. It's like a symbol of the campus."

Marie-Theres Kohl, Earth Sciences

"I haven't lived in Freiburg very long. I haven't found a favorite work of art yet. For me, graffiti is actually a point of contact with art. I find them appealing as long as they're not painted on old walls. What's more, I try to draw now and then myself ... or to paint or design posters. But I do it just for fun, not professionally."

Each of the "Nine Muses" is draped in a heavy fabric. The female figures created by sculptor Bettina Eichin symbolically bear the weight of history.

The Logo of the old Uniradio building on the campus of the Faculty of Engineering – in 2015, the radio station moved into the University Library.

The statues of Homer and Aristotle are known as the University of Freiburg's visual visiting card.

The "Carpet for a Geological Garden" ("Teppich für einen geologischen Garten") was the result of a competition to enlarge the Institute of Earth Sciences at the University of Freiburg. The walk features a colorful cross-section of the stones of Baden-Württemberg.

The sculpture at Building 101 on the Engineering Faculty's campus is called "Jump and Twist." Artist Dennis Oppenheim perceived the glass facade as a membrane separating inside from outside.