The Kunsthalle Mannheim has shaped art history with exhibitions such as Die Neue Sachlichkeit (New Objectivity, 1925), Eine neue Richtung in der Malerei (A New Direction in Painting, 1957), and Der ausgesparte Mensch (The Excluded Human, 1975). These three exhibitions reflected the artistic discourses of their age and ignited discussions among experts and the public. Keeping pace with the times, the Kunsthalle Mannheim reacted to new artistic trends – even writing art history in the case of Neue Sachlichkeit. These three exhibitions led to acquisitions for the Kunsthalle Mannheim’s collection, meaning that the exhibition themes from then have become specific focal points in today’s collection: the objective paintings of the 1920s alongside the so-called informel abstract paintings of the 1950s.
Curator Dr. Inge Herold presents part of the collection’s history in Remembering: From the History of an Institution, while also illuminating the role played by the museum in contemporary artistic discourse. The Kunsthalle Mannheim’s associate director refers to contemporary artworks in order to demonstrate which traces historical artistic movements have left behind.

Curator: Dr. Inge Herold