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Beuys at 100 – The Legacy of a Legend

May 7, 2021

Armed with fat and felt, Joseph Beuys revolutionized the art scene in the 1960s. He viewed art as something that could transform politics and society. Celebrated and controversial - what is Beuys's legacy today?

Joseph Beuys
Image: Angelika Platen/bpk
Image: Oliver Berg/dpa/picture alliance

Beuys: Art icon with hat and fishing vest

He was the most famous German artist of his time. Professor, shaman and eco-activist: in 2021 Joseph Beuys is still larger than life, and he is being celebrated with countless exhibitions. Time to reconsider his works and his legacy.

 

Image: Pedro Reyes

Palas por pistolas: With the weapons of art

Very hip and highly political: Pedro Reyes wants to make a difference with his art. The Mexican artist transforms weapons confiscated from drug cartels into musical instruments. A Mexican take on the spirit of Joseph Beuys.

 

Image: picture-alliance/dpa

Beuys: Big in Japan?

'Eurasia' was Joseph Beuys’s vision of a world unbounded. Yet quite little is known about the artist's 1984 visit to Japan. A Goethe-Institut project traces the impact of that trip, bringing together Beuys, Nam June Paik and contemporary Asian art.

 

Image: picture-alliance/dpa/O. Berg

Beuys + Cragg: Sculpture as a political act

Tony Cragg first met Beuys in London, when he was in his early 20s. He was fascinated by the charismatic German. Today, the British sculptor is a leader in his field. An encounter in the Sculpture Park Waldfrieden with Tony Cragg and works by Beuys.

 

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