The rainbow prelude by the artist collective Arquus sparked a debate around memory culture and created an artistic, as well as politically important iconic image.

While the image of the painting spread through social media and the press, eyes on the ground searched for a trace of the bright colors in vain - almost as quickly as the colors were applied, they were removed. But the image remains. And it speaks. It asks questions, it challenges, and it promises to continue - if, according to the title, it was (only) a prelude. The exhibition of the Bode Galerie will start at this point and present the further way around the project. The vernissage will take place on 27.03.22 from 11 am - 2 pm. Prof. Christian Jendreiko will introduce the exhibition. The Rainbow Prelude was from the beginning an action designed for temporary visibility, a sign, an artistic setting, and not a work designed for eternity. As such, it stands in exciting aesthetic contrast to the idea of the "1000-year empire" and complements an iconic series. Marie-Louise Monrad Møller, PhD, art historian and author, and Prof. Fabian Schäfer, Japanologist, point to the digital second use as a conceptual component of the new, contemporary and long overdue pictorial icon created in 2020 with the Rainbow Prelude.
At first glance, the "rainbow" appears decorative - perhaps even naïve. It stands out from the monotonous facade and cleverly uses its form. In reality, however, it is a conceptual work that offers the viewer room for interpretation - even now. According to Monrad Møller & Schäfer, "A counter monument derives its legitimacy solely from the existence of an existing monument, but draws its statement from the current understanding of history."
The rainbow at the Zeppelin Tribune became part of Nuremberg's recent (art) history, already grammar school history books included the artwork in their pages and the public broadcaster 3Sat highlighted the action in the context of the documentary "Propaganda aus Stein".