‘ … now I feel the need to be far away, I am homesick and have an almost insatiable desire for new things.’ August Macke, 1912

In the spring of 1914, the young painter August Macke set out from the Rhineland to Tunisia, accompanied by fellow artists Paul Klee and Louis Moilliet. This now-famous Tunis Journey serves as the starting point for this exhibition. The trip, lasting just two weeks and taking place shortly before the outbreak of World War I, can be seen as a historic example of artistic striving for intercultural exchange. The experience led to a reorientation for the travelling artists, inspiring them to create significant works of art. At the same time, this journey provides an opportunity to reflect on themes such as intercultural exchange, postcolonialism, and cultural appropriation — issues that have since gained increasing relevance and remain central to contemporary discourses.

Artists of later generations have viewed historical expeditions like this in a different light, critically questioning the dominance of the European perspective and the act of cultural appropriation. In today’s globalised art world, it is essential for artists to be aware of their privileged position and the responsibilities that come with it when engaging in travel and intercultural encounters.

For this reason, the exhibition places works created with reference to the Tunis Journey in dialogue not only with contemporary pieces from that period but also with works from later decades up to the present, some of them created specifically for the exhibition. The exhibition seeks to bridge different historical moments, highlighting the ongoing relevance of art as a means of exploring identity, history, and cultural encounters.

WITH WORKS BY (selection): Yto Barrada, Lothar Baumgarten, Joseph Beuys, Michael Buthe, Manaf Halbouni, Ernst Isselmann, Nadia Kaabi-Linke, August Macke, Gabriele Münter, Louis Moilliet, Heinrich Nauen, Peter Piller, Sigmar Polke, Haleh Redjaian, Ulrike Rosenbach, Hamid Zénati