by Hildegard Domizlaff (1898 – 1987)
High altar of the Vatican church, Expo Brussels1958
Photo: Bernd Kirtz 1977 (excerpt)
Above the high altar, still radiant to the oncoming visitor, hangs the altar cross by the sculptor, medallist, woodcut and jewelry artist Hildegard Domizlaff, who resided in Cologne from 1926 until her death
The Brussels Trinity Cross is a type of cross pattee, measuring 92 cm, with thin ivory plaques applied to the front and back, and the three-part corpus is gilded. The crucifix is fully modeled in the round, the head is inclined forward, and the facial expression follows traditional conventions. Above, a hand emerges from a hinted cloud holding a laurel wreath over Jesus' head: the right hand of God the Father. Next to the head of Christ rests a little dove, symbolizing the Holy Spirit. The Trinity Cross is ornately adorned with exquisitely set semi-precious stones of varying sizes. The tips of the cross are embellished with rock crystals as large as a fist.
Photo: Max Schulz 2019 (excerpt)
On the reverse side is a bas-relief of a 'Madonna and Child' – not added later for the Church of Our Lady.
In the altar cross, one can find what is often attributed to Domizlaff's early works: a clear affinity with late antique and early Christian traditions (Ingrid Severin). In the 1950s, the artist created numerous Madonnas, brass crosses, and altars. Among the well-known works of sacred art by Domizlaff are the crozier and the legendary coal ring of the later Ruhr bishop Franz Hengsbach.
References:
Goepel, Erhard: Hildegard Domizlaff, Köln. Zum 60. Geburtstag der Künstlerin, in: Das Münster 5/6, 1959, p. 188-199.
Kröning, Wolfgang: Der Reliquienschrein in Essen von Hildegard Domizlaff, in: Das Münster 5/6, 1963, p. 202 f.
Severin, I.L.: Hildegard Domizlaff, in: DeGruyter, Allgemeines Künstlerlexikon, Bd. 28, 2000, p. 455 f.
Severin, Ingrid Leonie: Hildegard Domizlaff – Bildhauerin (1898-1987),
in: Internetportal Rheinische Geschichte, retrieved from: http://www.rheinische-geschichte.lvr.de/Persoenlichkeiten/hildegard-domizlaff-/DE-2086/lido/57c696384797c5.41051994 (Jan 8, 2019).
