This development is also reflected in the collection: many works were created in times of social upheaval. They bear witness to closeness and distance, to separation and togetherness as something fragile and constantly under challenge. Under the title CHALLENGED TOGETHERNESS, the anniversary exhibition brings together artworks that highlight individuality, contradiction, and the multiplicity of societal voices. Key works from the collection enter into dialogue with contemporary positions, some of which have been newly created for this exhibition.

Together, these works explore the complexity of community and encourage reflection on both historical and current forms of coexistence. Togetherness is never a given – it must be renegotiated time and again. The artworks reveal the ambivalences, challenge familiar patterns of thought, and probe the boundaries between individual and collective memory.

Spread across the museum’s entire exhibition space, CHALLENGED TOGETHERNESS presents a multifaceted panorama of painting, photography, video art, installations, graphics, and sculpture. The exhibition spans five decades – from the artistic practices of the 20th century and the societal shifts following 1989 to today’s forms of communal life. At its heart are questions of community and togetherness – and the role each individual plays within it.

Artists from the collection: Özlem Altın, Giovanni Anselmo, Johanna Bartl, Horst Bartnig, Christian Boltanski, Sergey Bratkov, Peter Bräuning/Grit Bümann/Ansgar Frerich, Heinz Breloh, Joachim Brohm, Ernesto Burgos, Anthony Caro, Lawrence Carroll, Enrico Castellani, William Christenberry, Johan Creten, Hartwig Ebersbach, Jonas Englert, Brian Eno, Ruth Francken, Nan Goldin, Monika Huber, Leiko Ikemura, Sanja Iveković, Sven Johne, Rashid Johnson, Annika Kahrs, Koji Kamoji, Jens Klein, Jannis Kounellis, Wieland Krause, Lore Krüger, Hans-Wulf Kunze, Rolf Lindemann, David Lynch, Christiane Möbus, Maurizio Nannucci, Norbert Prangenberg, Lucas Reiner, Raffael Rheinsberg, Xanti Schawinsky, Michael Schmidt, Baldur Schönfelder, Jochen Seidel, Christopher J. Smith, Hito Steyerl, Gabriele Stötzer, Werner Stötzer, Zandile Tshabalala, Max Uhlig, Olaf Wegewitz, Tobias Zielony, Gilberto Zorio
Invited positions by: Isaac Chong Wai, Itamar Gov, Marina Naprushkina, Diane Severin Nguyen, Elske Rosenfeld