Gallery of Contemporary Art

All art has been contemporary
till 31 October 2010

Over a period of six months, the Hamburger Kunsthalle is presenting works from the Old Masters, 19th-Century and Classical Modernism Collections in dialogue with artworks from the Galerie der Gegenwart. All art has been contemporary, which takes its name from a neon piece by Maurizio Nannucci (1999), calls attention to the often forgotten fact that every artwork has at some point been contemporary. While ‘historical’ and ‘current’ works of art may be centuries apart in terms of their date of origin and their style, similarities often exist between them on a formal or thematic level. This serves to remind us that every work of art is an expression of human experience and an exploration of universal issues, and that the artists’ intentions are not as far removed from each other as is commonly assumed. The unusual juxtapositions of works in this exhibition take visitors on an artistic journey through time and encourage a different kind of comparative viewing.

Juan Muñoz (1953-2001)
Conversation Piece, 1993,
Polyester, Figur je 162 x 90 x 90 cm,
Sammlung Lafrenz, Hamburg vor Bernado Strozzi, genannt il Prete Genovese (1598-1669)
Die Erziehung der Maria, um 1615-1620
© Hamburger Kunsthalle

Hubert Kiecol (*1950)
Tisch mit acht Häusern
Beton, Gips, Schellak 102 x 131 x 88 cm, Sammlung Lafrenz, Hamburg
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2010,
vor 3 Kircheninterieurs von Pieter Jansz. Saendredam, Die Marienkirche in Utrecht, 1638
Emanuel de Witte, Die Oude Kerk in Amsterdam, 1659
Gerard Houckgeest, Der Chor der Nieuwe Kerk in Delft mit dem Grabmal Willems I, Prinz von Oranien, 1650
© Hamburger Kunsthalle

Luca Giordano (1662-1705)
Demokrit, um 1690
Öl auf Leinwand
© Hamburger Kunsthalle
Friedrich Hagemann (1773-1806)
Bildnis Immanuel Kant, 1801
Marmorbüste
© Hamburger Kunsthalle

Richard Long (*1945)
Mountain Circle, Frankfurt, 1991
Kalksteine aus Pierre de Sorcy, Normandie, Durchmesser 400 cm
Sammlung Lafrenz, Hamburg,
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2010
Vor Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840)
Das Eismeer, 1823-24
Öl auf Leinwand
© Hamburger Kunsthalle

Maurizio Nannucci (*1939)
ALL ART HAS BEEN CONTEMPORARY, 1999
Neonskulptur
Sammlung Michael Stich

All Photos: Kay Riechers