Image: Lentos Art Museum, Berlin
Lentos Art Museum has placed Max Pechstein at the centre of its summer exhibition programme with 'Max Pechstein. Abenteuer Expressionismus', a retrospective running until 30 August 2026. The museum describes the show as a comprehensive look at one of German Expressionism’s leading figures, bringing together key works from different phases of Pechstein’s career, many of them shown in Austria for the first time.
The presentation is framed by the museum’s note that Pechstein was widely regarded by contemporaries as a leading member of the Brücke artists’ group and held a central position within the German avant-garde in the first decades of the 20th century. The retrospective gathers works spanning his output, including paintings such as 'Die Unterhaltung' (1920), 'Abend im Hafen von Leba' (1951), 'Bildnis Marta' (1949), 'Am Garder See' (1924), 'Frauen am Ufer' (1953), 'Einradfahrerinnen' (1928), 'Stürzende Welle' (1943), 'Herrenbildnis (Wolfgang Gurlitt)' (1919), 'Selbstbildnis mit Pfeife' (c. 1946) and 'Sonnenblumen mit blauer Vase' (1948).
The Pechstein exhibition is one of two special exhibitions currently highlighted by the museum. Alongside it, 'Spuren der Wirklichkeit' runs until 16 August 2026 and is presented as a survey tied to the 200th anniversary of photography. The show examines how artists have used the medium since its beginnings as part of their image-making processes, setting historical positions in open dialogue with contemporary works and asking what conditions shape photography as an image-making medium.
Lentos has also built a public programme around the Pechstein exhibition. Regular public tours are scheduled on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, with specific dates listed through 30 August. The museum says these tours last 60 minutes, are limited to 25 people, and cost €4 plus admission, with no advance booking required and places allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. On selected Thursdays, curator-led tours titled 'Hintergründe und Zusammenhänge, zu „Max Pechstein“' are also offered, with Brigitte Reutner-Doneus named as guide.
The museum’s newsletter places the exhibition in a wider summer offering that includes family and educational programming. In a one-week summer workshop titled 'Give Peace a Chance' from 13 to 17 July, children aged seven to 14 are invited to build a large monument in the museum foyer with artists Cécile Belmont and Klaus Scheuringer, in cooperation with the Kinderkulturzentrum Kuddelmuddel. The newsletter also notes a 'Baby Tour' through Forum Metall and a free August for families, but these activities are presented separately from the main exhibition announcement.
'Max Pechstein. Abenteuer Expressionismus' remains on view at Lentos until 30 August 2026, with public tours continuing throughout the run and the curator’s tours scheduled on 13 and 20 August at 17:00 and 18:00.
