28.01.2016
Neues Museum
Due to overwhelming visitor interest, the exhibition 'Beards – Between Nature and Razor' currently on view at the Neues Museum will be extended until 3 July 2016. Additional curator-guided tours will be offered for the extended period, on the 1st and 3rd Thursday in the month. More details on other events during the exhibition's run are available on this website and on social media, under the hashtag #bartimmuseum.
Whether goatees, full beards or moustaches, humans have been depicting beards of all shapes and sizes throughout 5000 years of visual culture. Beards have been worn to convey qualities such as wisdom, power, and social allegiance in a wide range of cultural contexts: from Ancient Egypt, the Ancient Near East, the classical civilizations of the Mediterranean – right through to present-day Europe. When beards have fallen out of favour, it is often because of the perception that they somehow run counter to such values as progress and modernity. So how is it that beards are once again fashionable, to the extent that young men today are more likely to be bearded than clean-shaven?
The Staatliche Museen's cross-collection display 'Beards …' traces the cultural history of the beard and will be on show until the summer. As cultural phenomena, facial hair and the act of shaving have accompanied mankind since the dawn of history and have undergone a process of constant change, in terms of their appearance, significance, and cultural value.
Curator's tours:
1st Thursday in the month, 18:00–19:00
Limited spaces available, reservations required:
Tel. 030 / 266 42 42 42 (Mon–Fri 9:00–16:00)
Meeting point: information desk in the Neues Museum
Fee: €4