What's on at Europe's Museums
October 20, 2003
Museum of Culture and History, Magdeburg, Germany
The city of the Green Citadel is the venue for a major retrospective of Austrian artist Friedensreich Hundertwasser's world-famous architecture presented under the theme "Hated, Built, Loved." Over a dozen gigantic models representing Hundertwasser's creations, which have been constructed around the world, as well as about 50 graphics, texts and photos, are featured in the biographical exhibition. Hundertwasser’s eccentric, organic and colorful architecture is known for its onion-shaped domes and asymmetrical facades. A few of his popular works in Germany include the railway station in Uelzen in Lower Saxony, a church in Bärnbach, Bavaria, as well as the Martin Luther Gymnasium in Wittenberg. The exhibition also reveals a planned project in Magdeburg by the artist, who died in 2000.
"Hundertwasser: Hated, Built, Loved," runs from Oct. 20 through Jan. 18. The museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Exploring Cy Twombly
Pinothek der Moderne, Munich
A long-awaited retrospective of Cy Twombly's paintings, drawings and monotypes is currently on exhibit at Munich’s Pinothek der Moderne Museum. On the occasion of his 75th birthday, the American artist has decided to put most of his previously unexhibited works on display, giving the world a chance to explore the nuances of his creations. The show brings together 80 works, incorporating Twombly's first drawings and monotypes created around 1953 and his later works completed in Italy, his adopted home country.
"Cy Twombly: 50 Years of Works on Paper," runs from Oct. 7 to Nov. 30. The museum is open daily, except Tuesday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Wednesdays, the hours are extended until 8 p.m.
The art of suffering
Rautenstrauch Joest Museum, Cologne, Germany
A new art exhibit in Cologne sheds light on the explosive dimensions the fatal disease AIDS has reached in sub-Saharan Africa. The exhibition presents AIDS as it is seen from the perspective of the African artist. Sculptures, paintings and pictures from various museums all over the world are the media chosen here to illustrate the decimating effects the disease has had in Africa, where infection rates are going through the roof. In the hands of the artists', the creations become a tool to project feelings of helplessness and despair on the one hand as well as hope and confidence on the other.
"Sexuality and Death: Contemporary Art on AIDS in Africa" is on exhibit from Oct. 19 through Jan. 25 at the Rautenstrauch Joest Museum in Cologne. The museum is open Tuesday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.
A Mexican master in Milan
Palazzo della Permanente, Milan, Italy
Frida Kahlo is one of the greatest Mexican artists of her times. In her short but moving life she painted close to 80 works. Her paintings reflect her turbulent emotional life and throw light on her work as an artist, feminist and communist. The show in Milan gathers paintings from the vast Dolores Olmedo Patino Museum in Mexico City as well as from various private collections.
The exhibition runs until Feb. 8, 2004 in Milan. The opening hours are from 1 p.m. – 8 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays and 10 a.m. – 8 a.m. on Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
The Hague celebrates Jongkind
Gemeentemuseum, The Hague, The Netherlands
The works of Dutch artist Johan Barthold Jongkind, widely considered "the father of modern landscape painting" and one of the forerunners of Impressionism, are the subject of a vast new exhibit in The Hague, which brings together paintings, sketches and samples from various museums and private collections. Jongkind, who lived from 1819 to 1891, received most of his artistic training in France, despite his Dutch origins. After showing in the Netherlands, the exhibition will move to Cologne, and in the summer of 2004, to Paris.
The exhibit runs through Jan. 18. The museum is open from Tuesdays through Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.