Transcendence – World Premiere of Ephemera Arts

Presented at Koblenzer Kunstverein e.V. in Germany, Transcendence marks the official world premiere of Ephemera Arts, a groundbreaking collaborative project between French visual artist and pianist Arnaud Quercy and renowned German musician Frank von Häfen. This immersive exhibition bridges the worlds of painting, music, and digital art, offering audiences an unprecedented sensory experience where abstract canvases become living, breathing environments choreographed to live musical performance.

At the heart of this debut is a 360-degree multimedia experience featuring five immersive universes, sculpted from Quercy's abstract paintings and animated through cutting-edge 3D modelization. Each visual environment unfolds in real-time with von Häfen's expressive flute and Quercy's piano, resonating through compositions by Bach, Elgar, Boulanger, and original works. The effect, as Quercy describes, is "a breathtaking plunge into the canvas—through music and motion, the painted space becomes alive."

The exhibition features thirteen works spanning acrylic and oil on canvas, each engaging with profound philosophical and poetic themes. From Transcendent Nexus, which visualizes St. Augustine's dialogue between faith and reason, to Will's Odyssey, embodying Nietzsche's philosophy of self-empowerment, the paintings serve as portals into contemplative inquiry. A triptych inspired by Edward Elgar's Salut d'Amour translates musical structure into visual harmony, while I Too Rising Hope reimagines Langston Hughes's verses through Miró-inspired abstraction.

The opening event on October 29, 2023, welcomed distinguished guests including Dr. Margit Theiss-Scholz, Cultural Councillor of Koblenz, and Petra Spielmann of the prestigious Arp Museum. Running through November 15, the exhibition offered daily visitors an extraordinary dialogue between sound, image, and the ephemeral beauty of the present moment—transforming fleeting impressions into lasting experience.

Artist Statement

Ephemera Arts emerges from a shared conviction that the boundaries between artistic disciplines are not walls but thresholds—invitations to cross into unexplored territory where sound becomes color, where painted space becomes musical architecture. In Transcendence, we have sought to create not merely an exhibition but a temporal sanctuary where visitors might experience art as a living, breathing presence.

Each of the five immersive universes began as a painting—a meditation on philosophical questions that have occupied human thought for millennia. Through 3D modelization, these static images gain depth and movement, their forms unfolding in response to live musical interpretation. The flute and piano do not accompany the visuals; they animate them. What emerges is a conversation across media, where Bach's counterpoint finds its visual equivalent in geometric interplay, where Elgar's romantic phrases bloom into cascading color fields.

We believe that the ephemeral nature of live performance—its unrepeatable quality—mirrors something essential about human experience itself. Each performance of Transcendence is singular, shaped by the acoustics of the moment, the presence of the audience, the subtle variations of breath and touch. In celebrating the fleeting, we paradoxically create something that endures in memory.

Logistics

The exhibition opened on Sunday, October 29, 2023, at 4:00 PM with a special premiere event featuring live performances and remarks from Dr. Margit Theiss-Scholz, Cultural Councillor of Koblenz, and Petra Spielmann of the Arp Museum. The exhibition continued through November 15, 2023, with daily visiting hours from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM at Koblenzer Kunstverein e.V., located at Florinsmarkt 15 in Koblenz, Germany. Thirteen original works were presented including Transcendent Nexus – A Visual Dialogue on Faith and Reason (AQC0493/2023), Will's Odyssey (AQC0494/2023), Unveiling the Cosmos Dawning of Reason (AQC0495/2023), I Too Rising Hope (AQC0496/2023), Eternal Encompassing (AQC0497/2023), L'Évasion – A Flight to Hope (AQC0498/2023), Ethereal Serenade Flute's Whispering Melody (AQC0499/2023), Harmonic Reverie Love's Chromatic Journey (AQC0500/2023), Salut d'amour (AQC0501/2023), Lydian Dance – Modal Composition No 2, Twilight Play – The Quiet Hour, The man and his moustache, and A♭ Major – Reflexions 3. For inquiries, please contact Koblenzer Kunstverein e.V. directly.