Ikarus from Lautertal

Gustav Mesmer – A Flight Wheel Builder and His Life By and with Franz Xaver Ott A man of the last century, and he still speaks to us because his life and work are so eloquent, even though 'The Icarus from Lautertal' was locked away in psychiatric institutions for 35 years. Gustav Mesmer's wealth of ideas leaves a lasting impression, as do his flying devices, texts, musical instruments, speaking machines, and his images. Even in old age, he possessed an inexhaustible creative energy. He was a quiet man who must have had a tenacious patience in his life, yet he was not embittered; sometimes he was annoyed, demanding, and occasionally angry about his fate and the hopelessness of his situation. But he was never powerless, for he had his dream, his imaginative work on the flying devices, a need to communicate in his texts, and joy in his own creations. His inventions are internationally appreciated. One of his flying wheels was exhibited in 1992 at the World Expo in Seville in the German Pavilion. When asked if he wanted to come to the exhibition opening, he said, "If I’m back home by then, no." 'Home' for him was his birthplace Altshausen and, in the last 30 years of his life, the country house Buttenhausen. Especially in this final phase of his life, he created an extraordinary body of work, which is now being presented on stage in the forms of play, music, text, image, and object.