Beginning in May 2025, the Neue Nationalgalerie will show Brazilian artist Lygia Clark’s first retrospective in Germany. With around 150 artworks, the comprehensive show will present her oeuvre from the 1950s to the 1980s, ranging from geometric-abstract paintings to participatory sculptures and performances.

Lygia Clark (1920–1988) is regarded as a radical innovator who pushed the boundaries of what is considered art. She fundamentally redefined the relationship between artist and viewer, artwork and space. As a leading figure of Neoconcretismo (the Neo-Concrete movement), initiated in Rio de Janeiro in 1959, Clark understood art as an organic phenomenon. She demanded a subjective, body-related and sensual art experience, which included the viewer’s active participation. This participatory approach within Clark’s work will be available for visitors to experience through interaction with exhibition copies of sculptures and sensory objects. In addition, regular performances and workshops will activate the work of this outstanding twentieth-century artist.

Exhibition Catalogue

The exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual exhibition catalogue. It is the first German-language publication on Lygia Clark and provides a comprehensive overview of her work.

Curators

The exhibition is curated by Irina Hiebert Grun and Maike Steinkamp.

Funded by the Kulturstiftung des Bundes (German Federal Cultural Foundation) and the Beauftragte der Bundesregierung für Kultur und Medien (Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media).

Organized in cooperation with the Kunsthaus Zürich, where the show will be on view from autumn 2025 to spring 2026. 

A special exhibition of the Nationalgalerie – Staatliche Museen zu Berlin