Exhibitions

Why just Ireland ?

This exhibition is a tribute to Ireland and its people, and I hope that I have selected images and texts that convey my often very personal impressions and experiences to others.

The landscapes of Ireland never cease to amaze me, leaving me speechless as I experience their many facets.

Irish music is deeply rooted in Celtic heritage and yet is always part of shared everyday experiences.

Ireland's history is largely characterised by centuries of foreign rule by
Vikings, Normans and, above all, the English, by the tragedy of the Great Famine, the suffering of displacement and emigration, but also by many forms of resistance and rebellion.

Despite all the misery, the people of Ireland treat strangers with empathy, friendliness, cosmopolitanism and the ability to show ‘immediate humanity’ even in everyday encounters.

So there are many reasons to travel to Ireland again and again, to have joyful and
enriching experiences, to be impressed, to change, to find myrself and to set off for new horizons again and again.

Rolf Thärichen Murnau 2025

All strangers will experience one thing:

Ireland lives on the edges of time.

The further the journey leads from the fertile east
to the brittle west,
the deeper the past
has dug its traces into the land.

Timelessness, roots into yesterday,
scenic contrasts,
constant changing of the tides...

Ireland has a magical aura.

The stranger enters its circle.

Peter Schünemann 1961

Why Worry ?

In life, there are only two things to worry about:

Either you are well or you are sick.

If you are well,
there is nothing to worry about:

But if you are sick,
there are only two things to worry about:

Either you get well or you die.

If you get well,
there is nothing to worry about:

But if you die,
there are only two things to worry about:

Either you will go to heaven or to hell.

If you go to heaven,
there is nothing to worry about:

But if you go to hell,
you will be so busy shaking hands
with all your friends.

You won´t have time to worry.

So why worry ?

Molly Malone
Dublin's secret anthem

A beautiful fishmonger,
a floozy who hung out with the students
of Trinity College,
but above all a person
who loved life above all else.

As with many Irish stories,
the factual core remains obscure.

Don´t let truth get in the way
of a good Story

I hope I have piqued your curiosity and look forward to seeing you at the opening or during the exhibition.

Slan
Good Bye
Adieu

Rolf Thärichen