When does the exhibition take place?

The exhibition runs from 14.02.2026 to 19.07.2026 at the Fridericianum in Kassel.

How much is the admission?

The regular admission is 6 euros, reduced 4 euros. Admission is free on Wednesdays.

Are there tours of the exhibition?

Yes, the Fridericianum offers public tours. The costs are included in the admission.

Is the museum accessible?

Yes, according to visitor information, the Fridericianum is wheelchair accessible.

Where is the Fridericianum located?

At Friedrichsplatz 18 in 34117 Kassel.

Is there an education program?

Yes, the exhibition is accompanied by education and mediation, including tours and inclusive formats.

Catherine Opie at the Fridericianum: Photography, identity, and contemporary art

Name: Catherine Opie: The pause that dreams against erasure
Start: 2026-02-14T01:00:00+01:00
End: 2026-07-20T01:59:59+02:00
Location: Fridericianum

Catherine Opie at the Fridericianum: Photography as space for identity, resistance, and memory

With The pause that dreams against erasure, the Fridericianum in Kassel presents the first institutional solo exhibition of Catherine Opie in Germany. The presentation, specially conceived for the historic building, unfolds an impressive art experience between portrait, landscape, film, and installation, linking the atmosphere of the exhibition with the architecture of the building.

A visual language between closeness and societal tension

Since the early 1990s, Catherine Opie has developed a photographic practice of extraordinary clarity and empathy. Her early portraits from LGBTQIA* communities shaped an iconography of self-assertion that combines intimate encounters with art historical rigor. The artist updates the tradition of socially oriented photography with a precise, yet poetic visual language.

Landscapes as resonance spaces

The exhibition leads into series where landscape is not just a backdrop but a repository of memory, hope, and trauma. Opie's works open perspectives on spaces where individual and collective experiences overlap. This creates an examination of the work that intertwines photographic surface with political depth.

Portrait, protest, and presence

Another focus is on the documentation of societal movements such as Black Lives Matter and protest marches surrounding Donald Trump's presidency. Opie's works illustrate how photography can become a historical witness: not distanced, but with precise empathy towards bodies, gestures, and situations. This connection of aesthetic experience and societal urgency is one of the reasons for her outstanding position in contemporary art.

Curating with dialogue to the place

The exhibition is designed so that the works enter into a direct dialogue with the history and spatial effect of the Fridericianum. The house, one of the earliest public museums in Europe, offers a charged stage: a place where art history, curating, and contemporary photography reinforce one another.

Education, tours, and inclusive access

The Fridericianum accompanies the exhibition with a diverse education and mediation program. Public tours, the curator's tour, as well as inclusive formats like the phone tour expand access to the exhibition. Accessibility has also been considered: the building is wheelchair accessible, and admission is free on Wednesdays.

Conclusion

Catherine Opie: The pause that dreams against erasure is an exhibition for all who want to experience photography as an artistic, political, and cultural language. Anyone wishing to see how portrait art, social reality, and spatial effect merge into a compelling contemporary narrative should definitely visit this exhibition in Kassel live.