Wettstreit mit der Wirklichkeit
60 Jahre Fotorealismus
28 February – 02 August 2026
Museum Frieder Burda
Lichtentaler Allee 8B
76530 Baden-Baden
Since ancient times, the aim of painting has been to reproduce nature as faithfully as possible. In 20th-century art, no movement has pursued this competition with reality as programmatically as American photorealism. In response to Abstract Expressionism, artists such as Richard Estes, Audrey Flack, Ralph Goings, and Ron Kleemann turned to representational painting intended to rival the medium of photography in its precision and visual power. Ordinary motifs from everyday American life became the hallmark of these highly ambitious painters, who located the power of the images not in the subject itself, but in its astonishingly illusionistic rendering. Through over 90 selected masterpieces, the exhibition illuminates the development of this art movement—also known as Hyperrealism—from the 1960s to the present day.
Karin Kneffel
Ohne Titel (Blaues Land), 2013
oil on canvas
130 x 160 cm
Text: © Museum Frieder Burda
Artwork: © Karin Kneffel
Photo: © Achim Kukulies Düsseldorf
