Artists

Joseph Beuys

Press release

The Hamburger Bahnhof is presenting its extensive holdings of works by the artist Joseph Beuys (1921–86) in the Kleihueshalle.

Comprising 15 key works by Joseph Beuys, the new presentation in the Kleihueshalle explores the artist’s complex oeuvre and critical reception. Alongside his environment DAS KAPITAL RAUM 1970–1977 (1980), the parcours includes sculptures, drawings, multiples and ground-breaking actions such as I like America and America likes Me (1974). The exhibition examines the ways in which Beuys’s work questioned the nature, materiality, language and perception of the boundaries and tasks of art. At the same time, it contextualises and compares Beuys’ vision of a slow social transformation with historic and contemporary countermodels by Grace Lee Boggs, Angela Davis, Agnes Denes, Donna Haraway among others.

The new permanent display is being held to mark the generous donation of works from the family of the collector Erich Marx. It will be accompanied by a rotating series of solo exhibitions featuring the work of contemporary artists – the first of whom will be artist Naama Tsabar (* 1982) as of 22 March 2022.

The exhibition will be curated by Catherine Nichols, curator and researcher at Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart.