Events

For the first time an exhibition at the Alte Nationalgalerie is dedicated to a comparison of the three turn-of-the-century art metropolises: Munich, Vienna, and Berlin. As modernism dawned, the artistic avant-gardes pushed for freedom in both the institutions of art and the subject matter it expresses. Many artists of the new art currents of Symbolism, Art Nouveau, and Impressionism were first presented in the highly regarded Secession exhibitions. This exhibition comprises more than 200 paintings, sculptures, and graphic works by 80 artists. Through a collaboration with the Wien Museum, it features not only many artists who can be discovered for the first time, but also foregrounds the œuvre of Gustav Klimt with numerous examples of his work. This is the first time such a comprehensive presentation of Klimt’s work has been shown in Berlin.

At the end of the 19th century the term “Secession” stood for the artistic beginnings of modernism. Art was surging forward towards freedom. Avant-garde artists showed their new creative works in the exhibitions of the Secession. In doing so they introduced innovative art movements to the public and helped Impressionism and Symbolism, for example, to achieve a breakthrough in the German-speaking region.