The Desire for Freedom: Art in Europe since 1945, which opened at the Deutsches Historisches Museum in Berlin on 17 October, shows post-war work by 113 European artists who have been concerned with the theme of freedom. Rather than examining this question in terms of the Cold War power blocs, it seeks their common roots in democracy and socialism, as offspring of the Enlightenment that must answer to its core values: freedom, equality, and human rights.
In this provocative and ambitious exhibition, such artists as Fernand Léger, Damien Hirst, Ian Hamilton Finlay, Armando, Tadeusz Kantor, Richard Hamilton, Boris Mikhailov, Oskar Rabin, Niki de Saint Phalle, Gerhard Richter, Aurora Reinhard, Christo, Arman, Mario Merz, Jordi Colomer, Raul Meel, Maria Lassnig, Eric Bulatov and Carlfriedrich Claus provoke us to think about freedom and the way we live our lives.
The exhibition, which was curated by Monika Flacke, Henry Meyric Hughes, and Ulrike Schmiegelt, runs from 17 October 2012 to 10 February 2013 at the Deutsches Historisches Museum (German Historical Museum) in Berlin. Learn more.