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Around 1900, young visionary artists in Munich set out to revolutionize art and to reform life. Facing a time of rapid scientific as well as technical innovation and social upheaval, they joined the quest for a fairer and more sustainable way of life. Artists such as Richard Riemerschmid, Hermann Obrist, and Margarethe von Brauchitsch turned their backs on historical styles to create a new art that permeated life down to the smallest detail. Their ideas formed the foundation for modern art and design. With examples from painting, graphic art, sculpture, photography, decorative arts, and fashion, the exhibition sheds light on Munich’s role as the cradle of Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) in Germany and demonstrates how topical the issues of life discussed back then still are today.

Never have more people lived on Earth, never has our impact on the planet been greater, never have we been more closely interconnected—our society is changing ever more rapidly. The exhibition Civilization tracks humanity’s visual threads across the globe, through the eyes of 150 of the most internationally accomplished photographers. The thematic tour presents both material and spiritual cultures from all continents, exploring a variety of aspects, from the great achievements of mankind to our collective failings. In the year of its 40th anniversary, the Kunsthalle München is dedicating this exhibition to the question of how we live today and sheds light on our civilization’s diversity and contradictions.