It is not often that a visual artist can make a particular object the vehicle for his artistic vision to such an extent that his name becomes almost automatically associated with that object. Günther Uecker, born in Mecklenburg in 1930, was one such case: for the art world, he was and remains the nail artist. Whether in relief paintings in which fields of nails are reminiscent of undulating meadows, or in sculptures such as the one in honour of Götz Friedrich in front of the entrance to the Deutsche Oper underground station, Uecker's artistry found its most striking expression in his use of nails.

The stage designs that Uecker created for Götz Friedrich's productions from the mid-1970s onwards showed how this expressive visual symbol could be used for musical theatre: PARSIFAL, TRISTAN UND ISOLDE and Henze's THE BASSARIDES for the Stuttgart Opera, and LOHENGRIN for the Bayreuth Festival. Günther Uecker also became an artist who shaped the image of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, although he only designed the sets for one Friedrich production here, the late MATTHÄUS-PASSION in 1999: The emblem of the circle of nails that Uecker created for the Deutsche Oper Berlin impressively symbolised the dawn of a new era of musical theatre that was dared here in the 1980s.

Günther Uecker passed away on 10 June at the age of 95. The Deutsche Oper Berlin will honour his memory.