21st Art Karlsruhe

Art Karlsruhe, which took place from February 22 to February 25, 2024, presented itself under new management with a new concept and new structures. Olga Blaß and Kristian Jarmuschek, who are now managing the fair in tandem, have reduced the number of exhibiting galleries and thus increased the quality. Around 177 galleries exhibited, including such renowned names as Henze & Ketterer (Wietrach/Bern, Riehen/Basel), Thole Rotermund (Hamburg), Gilden’s Art Gallery (London) and Galerie Ludorff (Düsseldorf). The exhibitors came from 14 countries and attracted around 47,000 visitors. The organizers [a1] of the art fair drew a positive balance. Those responsible for the fair cited Karlsruhe’s large catchment area, which includes the Rhine-Main region, Munich, Luxembourg, Strasbourg and Zurich, as an important locational advantage.

The new management duo has given Art Karlsruhe a makeover. The carpeting has disappeared from the exhibition halls and the hall structure has been changed. For the most part, those responsible have done a good job and the reactions from exhibitors and visitors were largely positive. The exhibition halls appeared much more airy and the certain overcrowding that was noticeable in previous years is no longer present. In Hall 1, works [a2] by artists such as Lyonel Feininger, Alexej Jawlensky, Alex Katz and Karin Kneffel were shown under the title “Classical Modernism and Contemporary Art”. Hall 2 is dedicated to “Art after 1945 and Contemporary Art”, with works by artists such as Jiří Dokupil, Antje Blumenstein and Gottfried Helnwein on display. Hall 3, which is entitled “Artication”, combines art and education. The new “Paper Square” format can also be found in this hall, where works with paper are presented. This year’s special exhibition by Landesbank Baden-Württemberg (LBBW) and the “Academy Square”, which offers young graduates of Baden-Württemberg’s art academies a platform for presentation, can also be seen in the hall. Art associations, art academies and cultural institutions will also be presenting themselves there. Contemporary art will be shown in the dm-arena, according to the counting sequence of Hall 4, under the title “Discover”.

The fair organizers have launched another new format: “re:discover” aims to raise the profile of artists who currently play no role in the art market. Around 20 artistic positions will be presented there. These artists include Renate Weh and Michael Ruetz. The aim is also for the artists to benefit from the funding program during their lifetime, if possible. The program will be implemented by art Karlsruhe with the help of the Federal Government for Culture and Media (BKM) and together with the Federal Association of German Galleries and Art Dealers (BVDG).

In addition, the Art Karlsruhe fair has once again awarded art prizes. The Art-KARLSRUHE Prize of the State of Baden-Württemberg and the City of Karlsruhe for the best one-artist show at the fair was awarded to the painter Carlo Krone and Stuttgart-based Galerie Thomas Fuchs. The award-winning Carlo Krone is currently still studying at the Stuttgart Art Academy. The Hans Platschek Prize for Art and Writing was awarded to Paula Doepfner and the Loth Sculpture Prize of Art KARLSRUHE – donated by L-Bank – went to Andreas Blank and Galerie Art Affair.