By B. John Zavrel
By B. John Zavrel
The Salvador Dalí portrait by Karolin Donst. This magnificent bust shows the surrealistic painter at the age of about 42 years. No one among the artists living in the 21st century has created a better portrait of the Divine Dalí. The European Art Foundation has a limited Edition of this artwork for collectors and museums. (info@europaeische-kultur-stiftung.org)
Berlin/New York (mea) The European artist Karolin L. Donst is a highly gifted portraitist. No wonder that she has just received a commission to create a bust of Pope Benedikt XVI. The German-born Holy Father will be portrayed in his official robe. Her work as a sculptor received international attention when she created the fantastic portrait of Salvador Dalí on the occasion of his 100th birthday. The Dalí Archive of EKS has also commissioned a bust of Gala Dalí. Of this limited edition, one pair belongs to the official collection of the European Art Foundation in Berlin. Another exemplair will be unveiled in 2007 at the US Museum of European Art in Clarence, New York.
Karolin L. Donst was born in 1964 in the city of Jena, Germany. After college and studies of art, she went to East Berlin in 1983. Fife years later, she settled down in West Berlin. There she had training for three years in stone masonry. "This was an important time for me", said Donst. „I learned a great deal of craftsmanship and got to know how to handle stone and make a sculpture from a rock."
She is also familiar with the technique of woodcarving and making sculptures out of huge tree trunks.
In addition to sculpting, Donst makes paintings in oil and watercolor, as well as drawings. She also has experience in working together with architects on official, public projects. Her latest commission was to create an historical relief for fountain of the city of Arneburg, Germany.
Boxing champion Henry Maske by Donst. An extraordinary work, which honors an athlete who was born in East Germany. Maske continued his career after the end of the Cold War between USA and the Soviet Union. A limited edition (marco-vg@gmx.de)
During her professional work in her art studio near Berlin, she created the portrait-bust Heinz Galinski, Chairman of the Jewish Community in Germany. Other portraits are dedicated to H.H. the Dalai Lama, Prince Felipe of Asturias (the Crown Prince of Spain), boxing champion Henry Maske, the German Prince Louis Ferdinand of Prussia. Among her portraits of ladies, we find the Hollywood star Senta Berger and Mrs. Hannelore Kohl, the wife of German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. Other portraits are of John G. Bodenstein (the Lord of Noervenich Castle), Curator Marco Bodenstein, Alexander Knight Arnulf Neumann-Damerau, the British painter Hugo Haig-Thomas and a post-humous bust of Albrecht Dürer.
The movie star Senta Berger (Austria) with her bust by Donst, during shooting on a film set in Germany.
A bronze relief is dedicated to Konrad Adenauer, the first German Chancellor after 1945, and a true friend of the United States of America. The famous Jewish musician Giora Feidman (New York, Israel) was honored with a Medal by Donst. This limited bronze edition, plated in gold and silver, is also meant for Feidman fans and music lovers. Donst created also a memorial medal of the German Reichstag in Berlin. This historical building of the German Reich from the Kaiser's time, is now the official seat of the German Parliament.
© PROMETHEUS 113/2006
PROMETHEUS, Internet Bulletin - News, Politics, Art and Science. Nr. 113, November 2006