A Friday, Sept. 23, reception and lecture on “Martin Luther and the Reformation” by Thomas Rassieur, the John E. Andrus III Curator of Prints and Drawings at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, is the first in a series of “Germany Meets the U.S.” events scheduled this fall on the St. Paul campus of the University of St. Thomas.
Martin Luther
The program begins with a 6 p.m. reception in Woulfe Alumni Hall of Anderson Student Center. In his 7 p.m. lecture, Rassieur will discuss the upcoming Minneapolis Institute of Art exhibition “Martin Luther: Art of the Reformation.” The exhibition features paintings, sculptures, gold, textiles, works on paper and some of Luther’s personal possessions. Many of the objects have never before been seen outside of Germany.
The lecture, and other “Germany Meets the U.S.” events, are co-sponsored by St. Thomas’ German program, the Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany in Washington D.C., the German-American Heritage Foundation in St. Paul, the Germanic-American Institute, and the German-American Chamber of Commerce Midwest Minnesota Chapter.
Rassieur, previously with the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, came to the Minneapolis Institute of Art in 2009. He has curated or co-curated 30 exhibitions, most prominently those dealing with Rembrandt and German Renaissance prints. His most recent project on the Reformation marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther’s “Ninety-Five Theses.”
Both the reception and lecture are open to the public and members of the St. Thomas community. The cost to the public is $20 if registered by Wednesday, Sept. 14, and $30 at the door. The event is free to St. Thomas students but they must register by Sept. 9. To register, visit this website.
This is the third year that St. Thomas’ German program has organized a host of events related to German history and culture. In 2014 the events focused on the fall of the Berlin Wall and in 2015, German reunification.
Other events planned this fall are a film series, cooking class, essay competition, ballroom dancing lessons, a soccer game, Christmas caroling, and lectures dealing with study abroad and climate change. More information on the events can be found here.
