Goethe
Transformation of the World
17 May to 15 September 2019
Johann Wolfgang Goethe is Germany’s most famous poet and writer. His works have been translated into every major language, and characters like Faust and Werther found their way into every genre of art. Like no other artist of his time, Goethe reflected the dramatic changes that sent shockwaves through the very foundations of Europe around 1800. He was not only an attentive observer of the dawn of modernity, but also an immensely versatile artist who continues to inspire writers, painters and sculptors as well as composers, photographers and film directors.
The first major Goethe exhibition in 25 years sheds light on his life, the dawn of our modern world and on the history of the reception of his singular work. Theatre, film and music will play an important role alongside paintings, sculptures and photography.
«Art is a mediator of the unspeakable.»Johann Wolfgang Goethe
This exhibition is the first to shed light on the phenomenon of the princely painters which transcended national borders, reaching its apogee in the 1870s and 80s before fading away with the outbreak of the First World War.
In neun Kapiteln erschließt die Ausstellung Goethes Leben und Werk sowie den Epochenhorizont seiner Zeit – von 1749, dem Jahr seiner Geburt, bis zu seinem Tod im Jahr 1832. Zentrale biografische Wendepunkte und Ereignisse sowie einige seiner bekanntesten Werke bilden die Fokuspunkte der Ausstellung. Gleichzeitig spielt der Blick auf das Zeitgeschehen eine zentrale Rolle: Die großen Ideenkomplexe und die politischen, gesellschaftlichen und kulturellen Umbrüche liefern dafür nicht nur den zeitlichen Hintergrund, sondern spiegeln die maßgeblichen Fragestellungen der Zeit, mit denen Goethe sich intensiv auseinandergesetzt hat.
Admission tickets
€10/ €6.50 (concessions)
Combined ticket for Goethe and Goethe's Gardens 14 €/9 €
School groups enjoy free admission to the exhibition on Fridays (booking necessary)
Happy-Hour-Ticket: 7 € (available two hours before the museum closes; individual visitors only, all exhibitions.) Combined ticket for all exhibitions available. <link en visiting opening-timesadmission.html internal link in current>More information
Photographing
Visitors may take photographs (without flash) in this exhibition. Share them on social media and use the official hashtags.
For legal reasons, this rule does not apply to all images. The works that are not allowed to be photographed are marked accordingly. We ask you to respect this.
Gewinnspiel
F.A.Z. meets GOETHE
Gewinnspiel der Frankfurter Allgemeinen Zeitung in Kooperation mit der Bundeskunsthalle
