Tag: art

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Art and fashion

There is fashionable art and arty-ish fashion. The links between art and fashion are manifold and new explorations of the link are always an interesting variation of the original theme. The Berlin “Gemäldegalerie“ has added a contemporary perspective in connection with Berlin fashion week 2026 to the already rich collection on the topic. The exhibition confronts the craft of the world of fashion represented by the dresses on actual display with photographs of those dressed worn by models against the backdrop of the historic inspiration. Add sound and video to this format and you will be close to total immersion into the world of art and fashion yourself. Art and fashion may be a part of all us, not only the privileged few in society. It is most of all a question of crafts related to art, design and fashion, which dominates the creative process. A strong message from all involved in the project to the visitors.

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Paper and Scissors

In order to produce art it is not always necessary to have expensive materials at your disposal. Henri Matisse has demonstrated that paper and scissors can go a long way. With this in mind, the work by Johanna Beckmann, shown in the upper hall of the “Kulturforum” in Berlin, is quite astonishing. Beckmann relied on just paper and scissors, in addition to her paper and pencil work, to illustrate her own texts as well as collections of fairy tales. Her paper cuts of some hobbit stories might be remembered by a whole generation of children and even some of today’s world. Paper cuts and theatre based on such figures have been a cross-cultural treasure. The illustration of stories, but also the creation of own characters might be derived from such cuts using just paper and scissors. The “Kunstbibliothek” and the “Lette-Verein”-academy in Berlin joined forces for this exhibition and they both continue to transmit this creative craft to students actively involved in this “intergenerational exhibition”. Please bring your (grand 😉 children.
All those who travelled to Paris recently will be well aware that at “Montmartre” you can still have your profile cut these days. At this exhibition there is a “do-it-yourself” section, not only reserved to children.

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Timely timeless

It is very timely to discuss timelessness. Some inventions or artwork appear to have a timeless value. The creation of books has this feature as we have known also a lot about the conservation and restoration of books across centuries. Timelessness is about an open-ended vision of time. In mathematics it is a usual part of the differential equations‘ calculus to handle infinity as an operationalisation or a form of a projection of time into timelessness. Humans have made considerable efforts to create material and, most of all, immaterial goods which try to exist independently from time. Geek or Roman philosophy are with us for more than 2000 years and we still benefit from returning to this original concepts. Egyptian culture and the wall paintings in caves still speak to us, thousands of years afterwards. Each clock suggests that time is advancing, but some treasures achieve the level of a timeless beauty, art or conceptual masterpiece. The more we talk about time, the more we shall cherish timelessness. (Image: Neue Nationalgalerie, Berlin 2026-1, The clock screening)

 

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Art Utopia

Not all art is utopia, but a lot of it. A series of talks on the issue of utopia in art  (BNF) reminds us on the utopian projects many artists have pursued in the history of art. From a non-believer’s point of view, religious depictions belong to some form of utopian art. Much later art movements proposed to bring art closer to people’s lives by spreading decorative art to objects of the daily lives, like furniture, dresses, jewelry. Different forms of experimentation with materials or art styles reveal a taste for freedom of expression, sometimes of a utopian kind, at least at the time of experimenting. Abstract art opens up thought spaces which may appear like verylong shots into a very distant future. Science-fiction is of course a well known form of dealing with and representing utopian ideas to larger audiences. Maybe it is this curated space of utopia which many people seek when going to exhibitions and galleries. (Image: Giovanni Bellini, Resurrection of Christ, Gemäldegalerie Berlin). 

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Bodies in motion

Since more than 2.000 years the art of movement and dance has fascinated people and artists. Early statues from Italy, which are exposed in the museum of the Bibliothèque nationale de France (BNF, see image below) testify to this. This form of art has been practiced within Europe and much beyond Europe as well. The human body in motion needs specific preparations and training to reach the levels of artistic performance. Similar to other art forms the skills have to be experienced and learned before you start to play with movements as a form of freedom of expression. Dance is not only a form of expression and identification of groups or generations, but also a discipline of rigor and body care. The fascination of human bodies in motion rather than the ballet of robots or drones, catches our emotions. Even recent songs do not hesitate to make this the central topic of a chanson. (J’aime comment tu bouge, by Claude Bégin) 

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Headless Saint Dionysius

Denis of Paris stands for the Saint Dionysius, who is reported to have walked after being decapitated as martyr for his christian beliefs by the Romans in the 3rd century, all the way from Paris to St Denis in the suburb of Paris. We do not only find such a statue at Notre Dame in Paris, but also a medieval version in the Bode museum in Berlin. The cathedral of St Denis in Paris became subsequently the place for the coronation and burial of many French kings. The last king who lost his head through the guillotines was Louis XVI. It took almost another 200 years to abolish capital punishment altogether in France. Robert Badinter devoted his career to fight for this appeacement within the nation. (Image: Statue St Denis in Bode museum Berlin).  

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Freedom of art

Some depictions or statues of the 16th century quite expressive and average expressions of their time. An angel who is playing the lute in a rather extroverted way is amongst the remarkable artifacts we can discover in the Berlin Bode Museum. The Angel playing the lute is an oeuvre by Hans Brüggemann from 1520 in Husum. The angel certainly performed holy music with interesting postures, which resemble more rock stars of the 20th century or youth performing an act of “air guitar”. Artists always tested the limits of the freedom of art and expression. (Image from Brüggemann Angel playing the lute, Bode museum Berlin, 1520) 

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Polyartist Colette

It is a complex task to do justice to a polyartist like Colette. The curators of the exhibition “Les mondes de Colette” (BNF 2025) Bouvard, Dimerman, Le Bras do a great job to present the biography of Colette, the writer, journalist, dancer in music halls, model (for Matisse) and entrepreneur in all facets of her activities. The role model of an emancipated women as early as the 1910s, 1920s and 1930s. The struggle of women artists in the early years of the 20th century to make a living from art is well documented already. To make a living of writing has always been a challenge if you do cherish your independence and liberty of expression. Versatility in artistic production is one escape route. Colette made a strength of this in diving into different forms of art and professional activities close to the artistic and creative world. In a quite unique way, she became her own muse for her own artistic work; and a character and inspiration exploring many facets of live. The economic misfortune experienced her parents became a source and force of inspiration.
Contrary to the expectations of the market of arts and literature, she did not feel like sticking to just one activity. Her most lasting achievements, probably, were her literary accomplishments for most people, although Matisse immortalized her in his specific style of abstraction.
Polyartists just like Polymaths, make more comprehensive contributions to our experiences.
(Image:Lithographie by Henri Matisse of Colette, exhibition Colette at BNF 2025).

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Embedded Artists

The Brussels districts have their specific identities. 

The Forêt district is reconfiguring itself rapidly. In addition to the Modern Art Gallery Wiels, It hosts a multitude of diverse artists. Many of them opened their doors to the public as part of the 4 days of Parcours 1190. It turned out to be a truly Inclusive experience in the broadest sense possible. The immersive experience of seeing the work and the artists, some of them in their private homes, created a sense of an embedded connection to their work and personalities. The artists are embedded in the district around them nd the people of the district might feel a bit more connected to the artists surrounding them. The artist has integrated the pink poster of parcour1190 into one of his works under the overarching theme of inclusion. Social inclusion can take many forms, The Brussels district Forêt has added new dimensions to it. (Image entry to Hassan Bouzougarh‘s exhibition on 2025-10-5, Brussels Forêt). 

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Inclusive images

In the last 2 decades we can observe a strong concern among photographers to broaden the spectrum covered by images beyond well established imagery of non-binary gender. Diversity in imagery has taken a broader scope to extend, for example, the age range of people who are portrayed as central topic of exhibitions. The topic of mental diversity is more recent and needs a similar or even increased sensitivity to do justice to the whole spectrum of people. The photography of people with mental challenges necessitates a much more careful approach to the persons and complex personalities the photographer intends to portray. Trust and the development of trust of more vulnerable persons is a time sensitive process. The work by Charlotte Abramow “Maurice, Tristesse et rigolade” is a fine example of a photographer who portrayed over a long time of taking care of her father, previously a medical doctor, The years of the final stages of the life course of her father have been the subject over many years as the survivor of an extended medical coma had to struggle with the tough challenge of re-learning basic life skills again.
Abramow portrays her father as an actor of his “second life”, where the borders between reality, reconfigurations of his memories,   and “mise en scene” to co-produce the images. The images go far beyond the portrayal of aging and mental challenges as a deficit of persons. Yes, it is an integral part of these persons, but there is so much fun and positive emotions that derive from the intensive collaboration of actor, father and photographer that the images stick with us for a longer time. The presentation of props along with the photos creates an immersive installation, which strengthens the emotional bonding with the inclusive images of the later phase of the life course of Maurice.

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Sink / Rise

Nick Brandt presented his engaged photographic projects “The day may break” in Brussels at the Hangar Gallery space in Brussels (2025-9-21). The photographic work spans the globe to document and tell the story of a an endangered planet. The environmental and social fabric is at risk of an unprecented scale in the 21st century. Rather than producing hours of documentation, Nick Brandt focuses on images that stick. His “mise en scene” is meant to haunt us. And it succeeds in it. In the best sense of a tradition of a “photographe engagé” he intends to convey messages, even whole narratives to us about and from people in remote places, who are endangered through our inaction or paralysis in front of the challenges posed by global warming and climate change as well as the social and societal consequences.
We can save people from drowning in floods and rising sea levels. The chapter Sink / Rise of this project was produced with people from the Fiji islands who participated in the futuristic scenario of a sunk island. Without accusations, these people question us. Why? How? What for? Where to? – without speaking a word. They spend time in on a sunk island, surrounded, submerged by beautiful, but morbid, turquoise water and the graveyard-like remainders of a broken coral reef. These are photographs not of these people, but about them, about their likely fate, and (very important) produced with them as empowered actors. May they have a chance to rise like a phoenix from the ashes from these photos.
The documentation on the “Making of …” (image below) as part of the same exhibition allows transparency and additional insights into the artist’s work and proceedings.
(Image: Hangar Gallery, Brussels 2025-9-21, On the making of Sink / Rise by Nick Brandt)

 

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500 years Motherhood

The history of art is full of depictions of motherhood. The catholic church has largely contributed to this phenomenon. Sandro Boticelli created in 1478 his painting of Maria and the child surrounded by singing angels. As Maria is said to know about the tragic fate of her child, her facial expression is rather sad or apprehensive than full of joy. The public acclaim has lasted already for more than 500 years. The women and people who sympathize with this depiction seem to share some of the worries about the future of both mother and child. Apparently, this has not changed over the course of the centuries. In the 21st century such concerns still have a co-determination effect on women to lead to lower fertility rates in most parts of the world. Fertility depictions in art history might serve as early indicator of behavioral changes. Some take centuries to play out. Technological,  medical devices or social policies can amplify such seminal trends. (Image: Sandro Boticelli and disciples , 1478, Gemäldegalerie Berlin)

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Raffael Madonna

„Mary and the child“ has been the success painting of Raffael around the years of 1500. 3 variants on this topic are presented at the Gemäldegalerie Berlin. Each pose varies only slightly, but each tells a very different story. The Madonna changes the regard from beyond the child, on the child, then to another child. An interesting sequence as such, which puts the relationship with the child also in perspective. The child develops over the sequence from the fast learner into the person with „power grip“ to the one that is spreading benevolence. The different stages of the life course are somehow taking place within a short period of the child. (Image: Raffael, Mary with Child, Gemäldegalerie Berlin)

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Gentileschi Gentileschi

There are 2 Gentileschis that entered the history of art. Orazio the father and his daughter Artemisia. Orazio painted many scenarios based on the bible. The incestuous relationship between Lot and his daughters is difficult one to portray and to do justice to the moral concerns involved. Artemisia, similarly, did not shun away from difficult stories of the bible and added a personal twist to these stories in putting her face into the biblical depiction. The cruelty of the stories become more explicit this way and maybe also her deviant position to the biblical narrative. (Image: Orazio Gentileschi‘ (1622/23) „Lot with his daughters“ Gemäldegalerie Berlin)

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Caravaggio Gentileschi

The „Gemäldegalerie“ in Berlin features in the permanent exhibition the famous Caravaggio painting of „Cupid as Victor“ (1601) in the same room with  Orazio Gentileschi‘ (1622/23) „Lot with his daughters“. The paintings show the same technique of painting with the stunning effects of light and shade. Gentileschi‘s own daughter became equally successful as painter applying the same technique and maybe even more recognized as her father. Berlin and Paris jointly allow to trace interesting new perspectives on the history of art from a gender perspective. The male domination in art of the 16th and 17th century was pervasive, but Artemisia Gentileschi a formidable exception. (Image: Caravaggio „Cupid as Victor“, 1601, Gemäldegalerie Berlin)

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Claudel & Hoetger

It is well known that artists joined other artists and groups to get inspired. The entangled relationship between Camille Claudel and Auguste Rodin has become a special example of the tricky relationship between learning and co-creation or inspiration. The role of galerists in building a reputation for artists is less well understood. The “Alte Nationalgalerie“ in Berlin opens up this black box a bit through juxtaposition of Camille Claudel, Bernhard Hoetger as disciples of Auguste Rodin. The influences are rather obvious, yet each disciple developed her/his unique style. The emancipation was not without frictions. The galerist Eugène Blot organized a joint exposition of both disciples in 1905 in Paris, which is partly reproduced in Berlin 2025. Great work by the curators of the exhibition Yvette Deseyve and Sintje Guericke who managed to bring together unique sculptures from 3+ museums and a great explanation of the links between the artists as well as the proximity of ateliers. (Image: view of showroom in Alte Nationalgalerie Berlin, Claudel & Hoetger 2025)

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Femmes Photographers

Paris puts 2 women photographer into the spotlight. The MEP and the Musée historique de la Ville de Paris feature a gender perspective on photography. Both photographers have a common starting point in black and white photography.  Each moved on to develop their art into an additional direction later during their career. Marie-Laure de Decker shifted from the early camera technology from black and white images to color photography in the later stages of her career. Agnès Varda moved from her initial b/w photographic work on to the production of videos for cinema, mainly focused on life in Paris from the early 1960s onwards. An evolution over the professional life becomes evident for both through these retrospectives of their respective work. Technologies evolved and became more accessible for artists’ creative expression. Both moved on to adopt new techniques and challenges. Great personal learning experiences and models for today’s challenges.

(Image Marie-Laure de Decker, L’image comme engagement 2025-8 MEP Paris).

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Gentileschi Heroine

The choice of a woman as heroine in a painting beyond religious topics was innovative in the early 17th century. Artemisia Gentileschi chose Cleopatra as her character in the ultimate scene of Cleopatra‘s life. The heroic act of guiding the poisonous snake to bite her under her arm is the ultimate act of Cleopatra to have served her country and people. As history books are full of male heros Artemisia Gentileschi succeeded in drawing attention to the biased gender stereotypes in art and art history beyond the 17th century.

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Gentileschi Selfie

Today the production of „selfies“ is all around us. Selfies are shot almost instantaneously and several times a day by use of modern smartphones. About 400 years ago the first woman to produce a selfie was Artemisia Gentileschi. As (one of) the first female painter in art history to have created a painted image of herself (which is transmitted today) Artemisia Gentileschi made history. Her unique biography, style and craftsmanship of the early 17th century in Italy made herself a renowned painter. Her choice to depict herself rather than somebody nobel or rich was quite unusual for the time. The audacious choice of herself as her „sujet“ became even her trademark. Later paintings by her with biblical topics were also subject to her reinterpretation based on herself as the female character in the narrative and image. In this respect her work appears so much ahead of her time that her impressive work speaks to all generations today. (Image: extract of Jael and Sisera by Artemisia Gentileschi 1620, Musée Jaquemart André“ in Paris 2025-8)

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Gentileschi Iconologia

Ever since the publication of Cesare Ripa’s „Iconologia“ (1593) the codes of art had become subject of a coded production and interpretation of art. Attributes of power or wealth like palms, scepters or crowns, decorated with gold and diamonds spoke a language easily understood by onlookers irrespective of time periods. Orazio and his daughter Artemisia applied this Iconologia throughout their work. The apparently simple depiction of bad weather became a sign of trouble ahead in a person‘s life, office or reign. From the success of Caravaggio‘s paintings, the application of light and shadow became another stylistic feature of especially Artemisia‘s work. Whereas the application of these techniques is a sign of craftsmanship, the own contributions like a more emotional and emancipatory repertoire of Artemisia make her an artist of her own kind. (Image Artemisia Gentileschi, Madelaine pénitante 1625, Musée Jacquemart André“ in Paris 2025-8) 

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Women artists

The history of art has been dominated in public opinion for centuries by men. However, recently art historians have drawn our attention to the numerous works of women who took Centre stage with their art during the last 500 years. Flavia Frigeri (2019, 2024) begins her history of women artists with Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) followed by Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1652). Both painters produced extraordinary paintings which brought their own touch to the paintings at a time when an independent expression through art was still largely reserved for men. The subjects of Gentileschi were greatly influenced by her experiences as a woman in a male dominated society in the 17th century in Europe. Her choice of subjects for her paintings added a female vision and depiction of biblical and historical narratives that were unique. The „Musée Jacquemart André“ in Paris featured a great retrospective of her art work in 2025. The catalog of the exhibition allows to enter into the art and wit of this early woman artist. 

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Zadkine museum

In the middle of Paris you will find a small former atelier of Zadkine. Transformed into a museum, the place is a cosy place to learn about sculpture and the different materials used. The preparations in form of designs or smaller trials with other materials are common practice to arrive at the sometimes monumental pieces. The visit of the permanent collection is even free of charge. A splendid experience in a surprising spot of silence next to buzzing city streets. Depicting musicians and musical instruments has been Zadkine’s shared passion with Valentine Prax. Great that he managed to reach the USA in time before the Nazi persecution could reach him. However, exile often means hardship as well. 

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Zadkine Prax

Ossip Zadkine and Valentine Prax once had their atelier next door to each other at art school. This established a lasting link between the 2. Whereas Zadkine became best known for his sculptures, Prax became famous as a painter. It appears that influences from one to the other are present in the works and several sculptures or preparations for sculptures were collected by Prax and found their way into the permanent exhibition of the museum. Intertwined biographies of artists are an inspiring reminder that art is not created only within a single mind, but many references or inspirations come from joint conversations or just working next to each other for some time. The social part of creating art is visible in this exceptional exhibition. Valentine Prax is honored with a presence in the Zadkine museum as well.

Image: Valentine Prax

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Zadkine Van Gogh

Ossip Zadkine has been a sculptor in cubists’ art tradition. He created famous sculptures of Vincent van Gogh after the death of the renowned painter and his friend. The Zadkine museum in Paris allows to get a great impression of these artworks. These sculptures reveal an interesting life course perspective on both artists sensitivity and transformation of their impressions of others or emotions more generally. The first study depicted below by Ossip Zadkine of van Gogh shows how he carefully studied the traits of van Gogh and his personality in order to better understand the evolution and death of the fellow artist. The emotional and broader psychological aspects of a character captured both artists. Doing justice to these inner feelings and society’s judgments about art and artists at their time of creation had strong impacts on both artists. 

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Roof under snow

The painter Caillebotte has captured Paris roofs under snow. Hundred years later this will be a rare event. The original painting we can still admire, the original scenario will be a rather rare event. Snow changes city life as everyone walks slowly and traffic as well as other noise is softened by snow as well. Mankind is changing the course of history through global warming while ignoring the consequences for later generations. The links between art and science are closer than we tend to believe.

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Music Lunch

The possibility to pass a lunch break with live music inspiration is, unfortunately, quite rare. The Brussels festival “midis minimes” has created a popular format for classical music to be performed in easy to reach venues in the city center. Working in the center allows to hop into a 45 minutes performance of varying artists, instruments and music styles. The “Cercle Royal Gaulois” offers enough seats. Even without a reservation it is feasible to forget about work and get inspired by musicians. and the composers and arrangements they propose. Gaëlle Solal and Juliette Hurel offered short digestible pieces by Bartok, Ravel and Piazzolla with a focus on their popular dance tunes often based on previous folk tunes. We virtually traveled from Romanian tales to La Habanera and Tango and back to work for some.

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Hallucinations serious

There serious hallucinations by AI and there are funny hallucinations by AI. Do we want our various AI models, from time to time, to crack a serious or funny joke? Well, that’s a bit the spice of life. However, not knowing when the machine is joking and when it is serious, this is more likely to seriously disturb most of us. This reminds us of our school days were teachers were not amused some pupils not taking them seriously in their efforts to transmit information. Now we know that a good atmosphere is conducive for better learning progress. AI as teaching and learning assistance could well work best in a “fearless“ classroom. Repeating a lesson several times and at your own learning rhythm will help independent of the seriousness of your teacher. Self-directed learning with a little help by AI might do the trick for many to advance how and when they feel ready for it. Hallucinations rates are a standard test for AI models. They range from 1% to 25% of queries.  This is not in itself a problem. It has become tough to find out about the 1% -2% models because you no longer expect them to give wrong information. These are the 1-2 out of a hundred of cases where we are confronted with serious hallucinations, seriously.
(Image: extract from „cum Polaroids“ from Eva & Adele, Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin 2024-5-22)

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Artist Development

For many artists it takes years before they find their idiosyncratic style. Testing different forms of art before zooming in on a particular style of art is the  common trajectory for most artists. Maybe the art marker and collectors of art are in search of a “defining style” for an artist so the uniqueness becomes more easily identifiable. Being part of a group of artists has been beneficial as well. The “Neue Nationalgalerie” in Berlin makes this development of an artist, in this case Lygia Clark transparent through the organization of a retrospective devoted to her evolution from abstract paintings towards participative and more organic forms of art. Berlin offers to interact with the pieces at the exhibition. You become part of the exhibition and the happening of art instantaneously. The form stays the same, the persons interacting change permanently. The piece of art is never the same. Just the idea of it thrives. In the Corpo Colletivo the performers wear an overall, all of them are linked to each other and movements happen organically as a group rather than individually. This is like a tutorial in sociology as individuals move as part of a collective body and feel the embeddedness and multiple links to other persons (Image: Corpo Collectivo 1970, exhibit in Berlin 2025)

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Odessa Berlin Odessa

With a sense of partnership, it is possible to travel between Odessa and Berlin in the “Gemäldegalerie” in Berlin 2025. Due to the war of Putin in Ukraine the “Museum of Western and Eastern Art” in Odessa had to relocate its treasures to safe places. The Gemäldegalerie offers a chance to view the splendid collection nevertheless. The curators’ team in a spirit of “art intelligence” propose, in a splendid way, most oeuvres from Odessa next to an example by the same painter from the Berlin collection. The visitor leaves the exhibition enriched by an experience of “jumelage” (engl. sister cities) of partnerships between museums, cities and their people.
In fact, we have shared the same imagery or visual heritage in Europe for centuries . The collections of paintings ranges from the 16th -19th century art  or from Frans Hals to impressionist influences.
We shall cherish the return of the collection to Ukrainian Odessa as soon as possible. The image below shows the places of origin (yellow dots) of the art works of the Odessa collection across centuries (map from the exhibition).

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Dépaysé in gallery

The installation ar the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin entitled „Fog Sculpture“ takes us from the sculpture garden of the Gallery into a tropical forest atmosphere. Just changing the humidity and visibility through the artificial production of fog transforms the perception of the artworks. A kind of Asian flair surrounds the western sculptures in the garden. The fog installs also a mystification whoch we know in art from the romantic painters like Caspar David Friedrich for example. All long-term followers shall appreciate the new perception of the artworks thanks to Fujiko Nakayo. It’s definitely more than old wine in new bottles. The artwork brings a more global twist to the preexisting sculptures and reminds us in Berlin even of the wrapping and unwrapping of the  Reichstag building by Jeanne-Claude Christo. We see the sculptures or architecture differently after they disappeared temporarily and reappear again.