Turtles, eggs and mountains? What pictures by Edgar Ende have to do with Momo, Jim Button and Atreyu
29 November 2023
In the current exhibition Fantastic journey with Jim Knopf, Bastian and Momo. Michael Ende – Pictures and Stories The LUDWIGGALERIE not only shows illustrations for the books of the unforgettable author. One area is also dedicated to Michael Ende's father, the painter Edgar Ende.
In Birgit Dankert's biography of Michael Ende, it is suggested that the relationship between father and son is not always easy and is characterized by various tensions. The reason for this seems to be the industriousness of the young Michael Ende, but also Edgar Ende's break with his family in 1953, when he moved in with his student Lotte Schlegel. Nevertheless,
Michael Ende deals with his father’s art: For example, in the publication The Mirror in the Mirror, in which he writes short stories about Edgar Ende's pictures. But references to his father's work can also be found in Michael Ende's literature. These motifs will be explained below.
The Turtle
Michael Ende's preference for the animal of wisdom and perseverance has already been explained in an earlier blog post. In Edgar Ende's The Woman on the Turtle
(1933) a woman sits on a turtle that is walking across the globe. Perhaps the turtle is a symbol for the world and the infinite, the everlasting? Similar echoes can be found in Michael Ende's Ancient Morla The animal is the oldest creature in Phantásien and seems to know everything about the kingdom. Cassiopeia from momo
is characterized by this enigmatic and mystical wealth of knowledge, but radiates in contrast to the ancient Morla also friendship and helpfulness. Tranquilla Trampeltreu stands above all for the moment of perseverance.
Das Hey
Similar to the turtle, the egg can symbolize the world and infinity, but also origin and birth. In Edgar Ende's work, the egg is used as a nest for two nuns. In Michael Ende's work, the egg also serves as a hostel - this time for the old man from the Wandering Mountain. Here, the egg takes on the task of a new beginning - it shatters when Bastian
calls the name of the Childlike Empress, saves the empire and ushers in the beginning of a new Phantásien.
Flying
Flies and wings can be found in Edgar Ende’s works The Winged Mountain (1947) The Birdman (1947,1948) The Crucified Eagle (1933) and a few more. In Michael Ende's work, Atreyu flies on the lucky dragon Fuchur, Jim Button and Lukas convert the locomotive Emma into a flying perpetual motion machine. In addition to classic associations such as freedom and unruliness, the humanization of flying creatures and wind seems to play a role. Edgar Ende gives the Bound Storm (1965) Tears and emotions and in the Infinite story The warring wind giants can be interpreted as personifications of the storm.
The (Fairy Tale) Telling
The Blind Storyteller (1936) by Edgar Ende shows the motif of listening and telling. This is particularly impressive in Michael Ende's momo where not only Gigi the tour guide acts as a storyteller, but Momo herself has the gift of listening. But the fairy-tale characters in Phantásien, who become lies in the human world, also reflect the moment of storytelling and fairy tales.
The mountain
The motif of the mountain can be found in both Edgar Ende’s and Michael Ende’s oeuvre. Edgar Ende gives his Winged Mountain (1947) literally wings. In Jim Button The island with two mountains plays a major role and the tank of the ancient Morla is also known as the giant horn mountain. Since the turtle never moves, the impression of a mixture of animal and inanimate object is reinforced. This in turn corresponds to Edgar Ende's personification of the mountain with wings.
These are just some of the similarities that can be seen between Edgar Ende's works and his son's stories. If you want to see more, you should definitely visit the exhibition Fantastic journey with Jim Knopf, Bastian and Momo. Michael Ende – Pictures and Stories Stop by – until January 14, 2024 at the LUDWIGGALERIE!
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