E.ON Art Collection donates 45 works of art to Kaiserswerther Diakonie

To make art and its positive impact accessible to patients, their families and the staff of the Kaiserswerther Diakonie, E.ON is donating 45 works by the artist Walter Liggesmeyer to the Kaiserswerther Diakonie. There, they will be exhibited in the K3 premises, the Kaiserswerther Diakonie’s new meeting place, and handed over for further display. “These artworks are well suited to a diaconal institution and will hopefully bring joy to many people,” said Dorothee von Posadowsky, Head of the E.ON Art Collection.

The oil paintings by Walter Liggesmeyer (1938–2017) have been part of the E.ON Art Collection since Innogy was acquired by E.ON in 2020. During a visit to the new K3 premises (the former bookshop), Dorothee von Posadowsky came up with the idea of donating the entire collection of works to the Kaiserswerth Diakonie. The decisive factor in this was the
artist’s particular affinity with diaconal institutions, as his life was closely linked to prolonged hospital stays.

Art aids healing
Art can support healing processes and open up new perspectives. This was also the experience of the Dortmund-based artist Walter Liggesmeyer: in the mid-1970s, he discovered painting as a way of coping with his bipolar disorder and as an expression of inner stability.

Pastor Jonas Marquardt, spokesperson for the board of the Kaiserswerther Diakonie, is convinced that art can have a particularly powerful impact in a diaconal setting: “The richly coloured and expressive oil paintings,” says Marquardt, “not only enhance the spaces, but can also aid recovery. For art facilitates the communication and processing of feelings, thoughts and moods. And that is precisely what we wish for our staff and everyone who visits us at K3.”

This hope is shared by Dr Leonhard Birnbaum, CEO of E.ON SE: “The artworks,” he emphasises, “are intended to make a positive contribution to the well-being of everyone who comes into contact with Diakonie – from patients and their relatives to staff.”

The K3, featuring works by Walter Liggesmeyer, is open to visitors from Monday to Friday between 8 am and 5 pm.