HAIR Stories of Power and Passion March 20 – October 4, 2026 Whether long, short, or shaved, curly or straight, hair is far more than a matter of style. It speaks of beauty and desire, of power and vulnerability, of conformity and rebellion. Hair is a potent form of expression—political, religious, cultural, and deeply personal. We use it to signal belonging, shape identity, and captivate others. The exhibition at Kunsthalle München invites visitors on a timulating, sensory, and surprising journey through three millennia of the art and cultural history of hair. Around 200 works, from antiquity to the present—including paintings, sculptures, photographs, video works, jewelry, furniture, design objects, and couture creations —reveal the power inherent in the seemingly everyday. Hairstyles have always signaled status and belonging, from ancient Egypt to today’s self-representation. At the same time, hair shapes ideas of gender and social roles: it can affirm norms, subvert them, or, as in drag, deliberately exaggerate them. Countless stories attest to hair’s power—at times a source of strength and vitality, as with the biblical figure of Samson; at others, shimmering between seduction and menace, as with the mythical Medusa. Again and again, hair becomes a political statement as well: a marker of protest, identity, and self-determination—ultimately raising the question of who gets to decide over one’s own body. This sensuous and surprising journey through three millennia of art and cultural history of hair reveals the powerful impact of what might at first seem commonplace. In a revised format, the exhibition will be presented at the Augustinermuseum Freiburg from November 14, 2026, to April 18, 2027. #HaareMuc #HaarMachtLust #KunsthalleMuc Sandro Botticelli Profile Portrait of a Young Woman, 1475–1480 55,4 x 43 cm © Photo: Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Christoph Schmidt; Public Domain Mark 1.0 Nico Koster Hair Peace. Bed Peace., 1969 60 x 70 cm © Nico Koster Ernst Julius Hähnel Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716), Model with bust section for the statue of the Leibniz monument in Leipzig, 1881–1883 Plaster, 69.5 x 57.5 x 37.5 cm Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/ Albertinum, Sculpture Collection from 1800 onwards © Foto: Reinhard Seurig/ Hans-Jürgen Genzel Salvador Viniegra y Lasso de la Vega The First Kiss, 1891 Oil on canvas, 128 x 225 cm © Photographic Archive, Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid Herlinde Koelbl Projekt Haare, Punk, 2007 Photography, 100 x 80 cm © Herlinde Koelbl Maryam Farahzadi Cutting Hair, 2024 © Maryam Farahzadi Ilse Haider La Stilla (2), 2002 Color photography, C-print on aluminum, 80 x 65 cm © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2025 Evan Penny Torso – Model, Variation 1, 2016 Pigmented Silicone, Hair 36 x 18 x 23 cm © Evan Penny Laetitia Ky Fighter, 2023 C-print on Diasec Plexiglass Satin, 47.2 x 31.2 inches Courtesy LIS10 Gallery © Laetitia Ky Sandro Botticelli Profile Portrait of a Young Woman, 1475–1480 55,4 x 43 cm © Photo: Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / Christoph Schmidt; Public Domain Mark 1.0 Nico Koster Hair Peace. Bed Peace., 1969 60 x 70 cm © Nico Koster Ernst Julius Hähnel Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716), Model with bust section for the statue of the Leibniz monument in Leipzig, 1881–1883 Plaster, 69.5 x 57.5 x 37.5 cm Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden/ Albertinum, Sculpture Collection from 1800 onwards © Foto: Reinhard Seurig/ Hans-Jürgen Genzel Salvador Viniegra y Lasso de la Vega The First Kiss, 1891 Oil on canvas, 128 x 225 cm © Photographic Archive, Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid Herlinde Koelbl Projekt Haare, Punk, 2007 Photography, 100 x 80 cm © Herlinde Koelbl Maryam Farahzadi Cutting Hair, 2024 © Maryam Farahzadi Ilse Haider La Stilla (2), 2002 Color photography, C-print on aluminum, 80 x 65 cm © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2025 Evan Penny Torso – Model, Variation 1, 2016 Pigmented Silicone, Hair 36 x 18 x 23 cm © Evan Penny Laetitia Ky Fighter, 2023 C-print on Diasec Plexiglass Satin, 47.2 x 31.2 inches Courtesy LIS10 Gallery © Laetitia Ky Audio-Tour A free audio tour (de/en) is available for the exhibition. This will soon be accessible from home and in the exhibition using your own mobile device. Please bring your own headphones with you when you visit the exhibition. catalogue HAAR–MACHT–LUST Accompanying the exhibition, Hirmer Verlag is publishing a comprehensive and richly illustrated publication. Edited by Roger Diederen and Juliane Au with contributions by Dr. Julia Saviello, Prof. Dr. Alexandra Karentzos, Dr. Justus Lange and Dr. Malena Rotter Lechanu, Dr. Mirja Straub, and Dr. Jutta Götzmann 336 pages, available in German More Less Children & Young People Accompanying booklet for children Available free of charge at the box office, ages 8–12 Guided tours for children during the holidays Workshops at the Kinderkunsthaus during school holidays, ages 6-12 Partners Newsletter Current information about the exhibitions at Kunsthalle München. Ausstellung exhibition Galerie Audio-Tour catalogue Kinder Partners
