Jochen Vennebusch Completes Habilitation Project

4 September 2024

Photo: Jochen Vennebusch

Jochen Hermann Vennebusch has successfully completed his habilitation project at the University of Kiel. He is now formally authorised to teach in the field of art history.

Vennebusch wrote his thesis, which is entitled ‘Studien zu Bronzetaufbecken des Mittelalters in Norddeutschland. Objekte – Akteure – Kontexte’ (‘Studies on bronze baptismal fonts of the Middle Ages in Northern Germany. Objects – Actors – Contexts’), as part of his research project on ‘Epigraphies of the Corpus – Textual Negotiations of Sacred Power on Medieval Liturgical Artefacts’ at the Cluster of Excellence ‘Understanding Written Artefacts’, of which he has been a member since 2020. Previously, he studied art history, history, Roman Catholic theology, and Higher Education in Hamburg, Paderborn, and Münster. From 2015 to 2019, he was a research associate in the Sonderforschungsbereich 950 ‘Manuscript Cultures in Asia, Africa and Europe’. In 2020, he received his PhD in Art History from Universität Hamburg with a dissertation on the Gospel books from the scriptorium of Reichenau Monastery.

In his habilitation thesis, Vennebusch focuses on the general concepts of bronze baptismal fonts. His study traces back the various forms of structuring, ornamentation, and the decoration of these metal works with figures, cyclical and narrative reliefs, and inscriptions to several different factors: local traditions (sometimes also the distinct differentiation from other centres of metal casting and the principles of composition used there), stylistic or technological innovations, the general skills of the casters, and, finally, to the financial resources available. Another central aspect of his study is the art-historical contextualisation of other contemporary artefacts such as altarpieces, goldsmiths’ work, and textiles. Not only can reciprocal influences be recognised here, but the associated workshops and craftsmen have also played a decisive role in the complex bronze castings and their form-finding. He also investigates the production techniques, which, due to their inherent potentials and limitations, are equally constitutive for the way the bronze casts were produced, and the contexts associated with the foundation, production, and use of the baptismal fonts. The inscriptions in particular are analysed in terms of their content, artistic design, reception, general visibility or legibility, the circle of addressees and, in some cases, their relationship to the figurative depictions on the baptismal vessels. Thus, the study provides deeper insights into the interaction of utilisation practices and their potential formal, pictorial, or textual expression on the baptismal fonts. The inscriptions in particular are analysed in terms of their content, artistic design, reception, legibility, their circle of addressees and, in some cases, their relationship to the figurative depictions on the baptismal vessels. These aspects provide new insights into the interaction of utilisation practices and their potential formal, pictorial, or textual expression on the baptismal fonts.