From advertising specialist to "steeplejack"

学校成绩和兴趣是电气工程初始计划学位的障碍，因此Ulrich Sukup选择了媒体心理学，并开始了他的职业生涯作为一个大型机构的广告商。为什么他错过了“生活的目的”，以及他如何在维也纳Votivkirche教堂的Vierungsturm的Airy Heights中，以便进行清洁工作 - 这是一个令人兴奋的故事。

Brushing not smoking

Actually the impetus had been set a long time before Ulrich Sukup started is dream job. "Tower plumbing", his father called it early on, "that's what you need to do." At a time, mind you, when industrial climbers were still in short trousers and this work was only done by a small group of eastern Tyrol "Church Steeplejacks" as they are still known in the local dialect. And so, after studying media psychology, Sukup first worked in advertising at a large agency, for tobacco products.

“这是一个陌生的非吸烟者和开发卷烟广告的想法。”事情进展了一段时间，但Ulrich Sukup在这个世界上从未真正舒适。当他走近30时，他一天在工作的时候站在咖啡机上，这种感觉在他的肚子里寻找，并且在窗前，他发现了一条扫地机。“他在做了很明智的工作，我想到了自己，并决定改变事情。”

深呼吸和通风高度

然而，在历史纪念碑的保存中的大规模订单的道路并不容易，因为此时在奥地利建立了脚手架的工作。耐力和信心是两个特征，帮助Ulrich Sukup在他的路上。经过大量谈话与大师维也纳的建筑权威，其中一名工作的工程师终于怜悯。“它始于小型项目，恢复绘画的牧场和那种东西，”Sukup召回。

But one day there was a call which pointed to the future. "Storm damage to a church had to be be repaired, and the costs for renting a crane and for traffic measures would have been EUR 100,000. When I was asked whether I could solve another way, I said: Yes I can." Respect for the task is as important as a rather high time pressure, and of course the separate demand that a mistake must not be made at this moment. "We successfully completed the project."

这一突破是在2014年教堂塔楼had to be clad. A renowned plumber from eastern Tyrol refused because he thought the job was too exposed. "I said, we can do that – and then I thought: What did I just say?", grinned Sukup. But the courage was worth it because ever since then, challenging cleaning and restoration work at airy heights are precisely what the former advertiser and tower climber does.

Protecting history with dry ice

For this reason, Sukup was charged with the work on the Vienna Votivkirche church. In 2016 he climbed the tower for the first time in order to inspect the damage and to document it precisely. Based on this he was able to work out what extensive repairs to the damage had to look like. "On the Vierungsturm we had to work with lots of lead, which is really difficult to climb," reports Sukup. "On the other hand, it was important to us to retain the appearance: The tower above the intersection between the transept and nave has different patina layers, white-grey or black depending on the wind direction. Replacing individual elements would have made the roof into a patchwork rug."

Secrets of the Vierungsturm

During the work on the Vierungsturm the sacred building was revealed, along with one or two other secrets that had been well hidden until now – this even included historical facts. "Previously it was though that the vault of the nave had been erected in 1872. But inscriptions were revealed beneath the patina layers indicating that the first panels of the roof had already been laid by this time. The entire roof and skeleton of the tower therefore must also have been finished." In addition, Sukup found the names of workers, for example, who over time had carried out restoration and cleaning work and then eternalised themselves.

"Historical buildings tell innumerable stories," Sukup describes the fascination of his work. "You can even tell that air pollution in a city like Vienna was considerably worse than today because of the large amount of soot – the gilding was cleaned just thirteen years after it was completed, which is barely necessary today." It is not difficult to work out what Sukup loves about his work and why he devotes almost every fibre of his being to it. "When I am working on these buildings, I feel the passion and the blood that other craftsmen had spent over the decades – it is a unique feeling."