Artistic credo

Under the direction of Rein Wolfs, art and artistic attitudes are characterised by strong communicative abilities, that are bold, proud, and confident and do not shy away from provocation. Not as program filler in between documenta exhibitions, but as a serious and distinguished formulation of utmost ambition, the oldest public museum on the European continent will regain its function as a mock-up for contemporary and sometimes future-oriented contents.

This energetic tension between the outside and the inside of this building of 1779 bears at the same time the rare chance to be unique and distinctive. The Kunsthalle Fridericianum is presenting art that strives to be ambitious and committed. It shall be human with a spark of grandeur here and there, a pleading for the preconditions of humanity in the 21st century.

Foyer by Richard Hutten

The internationally acknowledged Dutch Designer Richard Hutten was assigned to refurbish the entrance area of the Fridericianum. Especially for this foyer he designed a brand new desk supplemented by 14 seating possibilities consisting each of one letter, which altogether form the term 'entartete Kunst'.

The desk in the foyer is supplemented by 14 seats, each of which consists of a letter. Together, when placed in the right order, they spell the phrase “entartete Kunst” (degenerate art). In this way the designer Richard Hutten engages in provocative interaction with the building, which as a place of art and culture but also of politics since 1779 has witnessed a wide variety of regimes. Hutten’s work is thus a concrete reflection of the background to the first documenta, at which Arnold Bode exhibited a number of works of art that had been condemned by the National Socialists as “degenerate”.

Rotunda

The rotunda is a space for meeting - with art and with people. The room is used for events within the exhibitions and experiments with new ways of perceiving art. The presence of Wi-Fi and the possibility of going through artmagazines turns the rotunda into a working space. Self-service automates will guarantee good catering.