5 shows is the new Artissima twice-monthly feature that recommends 5 exhibitions not to be missed in various European cities, chosen from the viewpoint of curators and directors of important institutions familiar with the local context. A different way to find guidance in the discovery of contemporary art across borders, with a personal and always up-to-date perspective.
The first focus is on Berlin, with a selection by Lisa Long, artistic director of the Julia Stoschek Foundation in that city.
Here are the 5 exhibitions currently on view she has chosen for our readers:
Nan Golding. This Will Not End Well
Neue Nationalgalerie
Up to 06.04.2025
Neue Nationalgalerie’s retrospective is the first exhibition in Germany to present a comprehensive overview of Goldin’s work. The exhibition is installed in six unique buildings designed by Hala Wardé, an architect who frequently works with Goldin. Each building is designed in response to the specific piece. Together they constitute a village. “I have always wanted to be a filmmaker. My slideshows are films made up of stills,” says Nan Goldin.
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Samuel Fosso. Black Pope. Werke 1975-2017
KINDL Centre for Contemporary Art
Up to 16.02.2025
Samuel Fosso (* 1962 in Kumba, Cameroon, lives in Bangui, Central African Republic and Paris, France) is one of Africa’s most renowned photographic artists. In his theatrical self-portraits, he adapts iconic images of historical figures and social stereotypes. For this solo exhibition, the KINDL will showcase a selection of Fosso’s works from the 1970s to the present.
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I Know That I Can Double Myself
Georg Kolbe Museum
Up to 09.03.2025
The Georg Kolbe Museum is delighted to present the artistic work of the Austrian-French artist, choreographer and director Gisèle Vienne (*1976) for the first time in Berlin in fall 2024. This exhibition will take place as part of Berlin Art Week and is part of a joint project with Haus am Waldsee, where the artist will present a solo exhibition, and Sophiensælen where the piece “Crowd” will be shown on stage. In the exhibition at the Georg Kolbe Museum, Gisèle Vienne’s contemporary works enter into a transhistorical dialog with works by female artists of the European avant-garde. This encounter provides unique insights into the multifaceted use of puppets in art.
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Rohini Devasher. Borrowed Light
Palais Populaire
Up to 10.03.2025
Rohini Devasher delves into the intersections of science, art, and philosophy through her research-intensive practice. Borrowed Light, Devasher’s first institutional solo exhibition in Europe, highlights her longstanding engagement with astronomy, where light plays a pivotal role. For Devasher, the key to exploring new cosmologies between the human and the non-human lies in examining the interplay between place, observer, and observation.
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Semiha Berksoy. Singing in Full Colour
Hamburger Bahnhof
Up to 11.05.2025
Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart is presenting the first comprehensive retrospective in Germany of the Turkish painter and opera singer Semiha Berksoy (1910 – 2004). Berksoy studied at the Hochschule für Musik in Berlin from 1936 to 1939, and enjoyed a distinguished career as a visual artist and an opera singer. Spanning over six decades, the exhibition traces Berksoy’s continued connection with Berlin, and explores the intersection of her two passions, emphasising her unique, spontaneous, and bold approach to painting.
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