They fought for their education, for recognition and visibility – and yet they have disappeared almost completely from the history books. With the exhibition Women Artists! From Monjé to Münter, the Kunstpalast brings over 30 female artists back into the public eye.

The show offers an insight into around 100 years of female artistic creation in Düsseldorf – a city that was a beacon for women artists from all over Europe in the nineteenth century, even though the doors of the art academy remained closed to them.

Following a multi-year research project, this large-scale special exhibition is the first of its kind to comprehensively examine the lives and works of the women who were involved in the arts in Düsseldorf during this period: a (re)discovery that has rewritten a chapter of art history. “Every new difficulty was a new motivation for me,” wrote the painter Elisabeth Jerichau-Baumann around 1874 – a statement that reflects the attitude of many other women artists and could serve as the leitmotif of this exhibition.

The exhibition is the result of extensive in-depth research as well as a critical examination of the history of the museum’s own collection. Indeed, the Kunstpalast – founded in 1913 as the Düsseldorf Municipal Art Collections – played a role in this structural exclusion: prior to 1933, the museum had only purchased four paintings by women artists. It was not until recent decades that a significant shift began to take place. Since 2017, under the direction of Felix Krämer, there has been a targeted acquisition of works by women artists, including 15 paintings by nineteenth-century artists such as Emilie Preyer, Paula Monjé and Emmy Lischke, who are represented in the exhibition.

The exhibition uncovers buried histories and sheds light on the ways in which women pursued their artistic careers despite structural disadvantages. It shows courageous paths and smart decisions, telling the story of women artists whose work paved the way for what should be the norm today: equal opportunities for all, including in the arts.

There is also a special focus on women artists from Scandinavia and Finland who chose Düsseldorf as a venue for their education and inspiration. The exhibition was conceived in close cooperation with the Ateneum Art Museum / Finnish National Gallery in Helsinki, which hosted the exhibition Crossing Borders: Travelling Women Artists in the 1800s from March to August 2025 and attracted over 200,000 visitors.

Artists represented in the exhibition:

Victoria Åberg | Amalie Bensinger | Fanny Churberg | Mathilde Dietrichson | Alma Erdmann | Ilna Ewers-Wunderwald | Alexandra Frosterus-Såltin | Marta Hegemann | Minna Heeren | Adeline Jaeger | Elisabeth Jerichau-Baumann | Marga Klinckenberg | Benita Koch -Otte | Magda Kröner | Gertrud von Kunowski | Marie Laurencin | Emmy Lischke | Amalia Lindegren | Luise von Martens | Paula Monjé | Gabriele Münter | Emilie Preyer | Sophie Ribbing | Julia Schily-Koppers | Christiane Schreiber | Martel Schwichtenberg | Alwine Schroedters | Hermine Stilke | Milly Steger | Emma Volck | Marie Wiegmann

From Incense to Chanel N°5

The journey begins with the spiritual and therapeutic function of fragrances in religious ceremonies, which dates back thousands of years. It continues through the opulent fragrance culture of European courts in the Baroque era and the stench of 18th-century cities, where the legendary Eau de Cologne was developed. With the Industrial Revolution came synthetic scents, which not only influenced perfumes, but also soaps, detergents and other everyday products. In the 20th century, fashion houses such as Chanel revolutionised perfume history with their bold creations.

An Experience for All the Senses

Sometimes as subtle as the smell of a room, sometimes interactive or selected for individual works – the combination of art appreciation and the sense of smell consistently creates an intense, emotional experience throughout the exhibition. The Secret Power of Scents opens up a new dimension of the museum experience. The show is aimed at all age groups and links a multisensory experience with social, cultural and scientific perspectives. Visitors can smell history – and perhaps discover a piece of their own in the process.

The works of Hans-Peter Feldmann (1941–2023), to whom the Kunstpalast is dedicating its first retrospective in autumn 2025, revolve around the questions ‘What is art? Where does it begin, where does it end? Who determines what art is? What makes an artist?’

Even in his early works, recurring central themes can be discerned: everyday life, social clichés, voyeurism, private and public spheres, taste formation, humour and satire, dreams and projections. From the outset, Feldmann consistently pursued strategies of artistic appropriation, alienation and recontextualisation.

Around 80 works are on display in ten rooms, representing the entire spectrum of his oeuvre: early photographs from the 1970s, sculptures made from everyday objects, painted-over paintings and large-scale installations. This provides an overview of a body of work that focused on the seemingly incidental and banal, creating new meanings through alienation and recontextualisation.

On November 16, the Kunstpalast and Fortuna Düsseldorf are hosting a special eSports event: Beat the Pro! Here, gaming fans will have the chance to compete against eSports players Kai “Hensoo” Hense & Fabio “F95_Fabio” Immerthal from Fortuna Düsseldorf in the EA Sports FC 25 soccer video game in front of a big screen in the Robert Schumann Hall and put their skills to the test. This is the first eSports event of this size to be held in an art museum in German-speaking countries. The matches will be played 1 vs. 1. Take your chance and challenge the pros! You can win F95 gaming jerseys and free tickets for a Fortuna game and the Kunstpalast.

Kunstbetrachtung in der Ausstellung für Eltern mit Babys im ersten Lebensjahr. Im Anschluss besteht die Möglichkeit, sich bei einem Kaffee auszutauschen und kennenzulernen.

Gefördert von den Freunden des Kunstpalastes.

Der Eintritt für Freundeskreismitglieder ist frei. Nichtmitglieder zahlen den Eintritt.

Um 11:30 Uhr
Dauer 1 Stunde
Treffpunkt Führungen C

Wichtiger Hinweis: Nur Eltern benötigen Tickets.

In addition to painting, sculpture, video installations and photography, the broad spectrum of the show also encompasses everyday objects as well as music and commercial images. Connections between the works reveal continuities, but also the versatility of depictions of mothers, which are continuously being appropriated, reinterpreted, disputed and celebrated.

Curators: Linda Conze, Westrey Page, Anna Christina Schütz, Kunstpalast

MAMAPHONE

Pumps Hammers lädt am 12. und 13. Oktober zu den Fachtagen Dance Discourse ein. Das Wochenende besteht aus einem Mix aus angeleiteten Talks, Tanzeinheiten sowie ausreichend Zeit zum Vernetzen. Im Rahmen unterschiedlicher Workshops werden relevante Themen im Kontext von Freestyle Tanzkulturen gemeinsam verhandelt. Unterstützt werden wir dabei von großartigen Dozierenden, welche im Programmplan nachzulesen sind. Die Veranstaltung findet im NRW-Forum statt.

Am Samstag, den 12.Oktober, werden die Themen Gaze, Style Awareness Kulturelle Aneignung thematisiert. Der Fachtag ist für ALL GENDER (ab 16 Jahren) besuchbar.

Am Sonntag, den 13.Oktober, beschäftigen wir uns nach einem bewegten Warm Up mit sexualisierter Gewalt in Freestyle Tanzkulturen. Wir bitten um Verständnis, dass dieser Fachtag nur von FLINTA* Personen ab 16 Jahren besucht werden kann (Females, Lesbians, Inter* people, Trans* people Agender people).

Die Teilnahme ist kostenlos und bedarf keiner Vorkenntnisse. Es macht aber Sinn, wenn ihr Erfahrung (oder Interesse) mit Freestyle Tanzkulturen mitbringt. Bitte meldet euch jeweils für die Teilnahme am gesamten Tag an. Die Fachtage sind einzeln besuchbar.

Anmeldung und mehr Informationen über www.pumpsandhammers.com sowie über Instagram (@pumpsandhammers).
Pumps Hammers ist ein Projekt von Soul Movement e.V.

Pumps Hammers Conferences wurde durch das Ministerium für Kultur und Wissenschaft des Landes Nordrhein-Westfalen gefördert.

Franziska Hölscher Violine | Wen-Xiao Zheng Viola | Andrei Ioniță Violoncello | Felix Klieser Horn | Sebastian Manz Klarinette | Dag Jensen Fagott | Dominik Wagner Kontrabass

Carl Nielsen Serenata in vano CNW 69 für Klarinette, Fagott, Horn, Violoncello und Kontrabass
Jean Françaix Trio für Violine, Viola und Violoncello
Ludwig van Beethoven Septett Es-Dur op. 20

Beethovens Septett Es-Dur gilt seit jeher als eines der populärsten kammermusikalischen Werke des Komponisten. Das ruhm- und umfangreiche Stück mit heiterem Grundton, wunderschönen Melodien und nahezu symphonischer Klangfülle trifft in diesem Konzert auf Carl Nielsens augenzwinkernd-ironisches „vergebliches Ständchen“ sowie das Streichtrio von Jean Françaix, das humorvoll, spritzig-leicht und elegant daherkommt. Die verschiedenen Besetzungen bringen die Qualitäten der einzelnen Musiker*innen zum Glänzen, die allesamt auf ihrem Instrument zur internationalen Elite gehören.

Veranstalter: Kunstpalast, Robert-Schumann-Saal

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