Düsseldorf – Queer Modernism 1900 to 1950

Gluck, Bank Holiday Monday, c. 1937, Painting, oil on canvas, 23.7 × 18.7 cm‚ Private collection, courtesy of The Fine Art Society Ltd © VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2025

Queer Modernism 1900 to 1950
at K20 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, Germany
through February 15, 2026

With “Queer Modernism. 1900 to 1950”, the Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen presents the first comprehensive exhibition in Europe dedicated to the significant contributions of queer artists to modernism. Featuring more than 130 works by thirty-four international artists – including paintings, drawings, photographs, sculptures, films, publications, and archival materials – the exhibition project focuses on the first half of the twentieth century. It tells an alternative history of modernism, one in which queer artists placed themes such as desire, gender, sexuality, and the politics of self-representation at the center of their work. It also traces stories of queer life in times of war and resistance. Including artists such as Claude Cahun, Hannah Höch, Jean Cocteau, Romaine Brooks, Marlow Moss or Richmond Barthé.

The exhibition is accompanied by a publication titled Queere Modern – Queer Modernism 1900-1950. English edition by Susanne Gaensheimer (Editor), Anke Kempkes (Editor), Isabelle Malz (Editor).