Press

PRESS INFORMATION

War and Jam: George Grosz × Daniel Richter

5 September 2026 – 21 February 2027 | Oberlichtsaal & S-Flügel

| Press preview: 4 September, 11:00 am

| Opening: 4 September, 6:00 pm

| Between the battlefield and the breakfast table, between the abyss and everyday life: the exhibition “War and Jam: George Grosz × Daniel Richter” brings together two of Germany’s most significant artists in a dialogue that is as surprising as it is powerful.

The contrast epitomised by the title symbolises the tension that runs through the work of both artists: the uncanny proximity of violence and the ordinary, of political crisis and private life. Across some 800 m², the unsparing social analyses of George Grosz (1893–1959) meet the visually powerful, multilayered paintings of Daniel Richter (*1962). This opens up a cross-generational perspective on the question of how art responds to times of uncertainty.

For the first time, more than 180 works by both artists are systematically brought into dialogue. Grosz, known as a chronicler of the Weimar Republic, dissected the social and political upheavals of his time through precise and often mercilessly honest drawings. Richter, influenced by Hamburg’s left-wing autonomous scene , has been translating social conflicts into expressive, colour-intensive visual worlds since the 1990s – works that seek not so much to accuse as to reveal the ambivalences of the present.

Featuring monumental paintings such as Billard um halbzehn (2001), small-scale works and political collages rarely exhibited to date, the exhibition offers a comprehensive insight into Daniel Richter’s oeuvre. Among the highlights are six works created in 2026 that directly engage with the work of George Grosz.

The exhibition features George Grosz’s collages, oil paintings, watercolours, ink drawings and portfolios. Visitors gain an insight into all his defining creative phases – from the First World War through the Weimar Republic and the rise of fascism to his time following his emigration to the United States.

| Curators

Annette Vogel, an expert on George Grosz who has worked as a guest curator at German and international museums for 25 years, and Ronja Friedrichs, Deputy Director of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum and Head of the Collections of Fine and Applied Arts.

The exhibition was developed in close collaboration with the artist Daniel Richter.

| Audioguide

The exhibition is accompanied by an audioguide featuring original audio statements by Daniel Richter, historical recordings of George Grosz and musical passages. The selection of music was curated by Daniel Richter.

The audioguide is available free of charge here:

Audioguide – War and Jam

| Exhibition catalogue

An extensively illustrated catalogue featuring contributions reflecting current research accompanies the exhibition and is published by Walther König, Cologne. It traces the dialogue between George Grosz and Daniel Richter across their different historical contexts and artistic positions.

With a foreword by Ina Brandes MdL, Minister for Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia. Contributions by Ronja Friedrichs, Eva Meyer-Hermann, Birgit Möckel, Andreas Kühne and Annette Vogel

George Grosz × Daniel Richter. War and Jam

168 pages · 21 × 27 cm · paperback · numerous illustrations

Walther König, Cologne

ISBN 978-3-7533-1077-0

€29.80

A digital version of the exhibition catalogue can be downloaded here:

Digital exhibition catalogue

| Funding

The exhibition is supported by the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, Stadtwerke Hamm GmbH and Sparkasse Hamm.