When does the exhibition take place?

The exhibition can be seen from June 14, 2026, at the Fridericianum and runs until July 19, 2026.

How much is the admission fee?

The regular admission fee is 6 Euros. Admission is free on Wednesdays.

Is the Fridericianum accessible?

Yes, the building offers ramps, elevators, accessible toilets, and support from staff.

Are there guided tours of the exhibition?

Yes, the Fridericianum regularly offers public guided tours. The current dates are listed in the building's event calendar.

How do I get to the Fridericianum?

The museum is located at Friedrichsplatz in Kassel, near the tram station Friedrichsplatz. Parking facilities are also available in the vicinity.

May I take photos in the exhibition?

Information will follow. Please observe the house rules of the Fridericianum on-site.

Catherine Opie at the Fridericianum: Photography, Protest, and Memory in Kassel

Name: Catherine Opie – The pause that dreams against erasure
Start: 2026-06-14T13:00:00+02:00
End: 2026-07-19T20:00:00+02:00
Location: Fridericianum

Catherine Opie at the Fridericianum: An exhibition about visibility, memory and belonging

The Fridericianum in Kassel presents The pause that dreams against erasure, the first institutional solo exhibition of Catherine Opie in Germany. The show, conceived by the artist specifically for the historical building, brings photography, film, and installation into an exciting dialogue with architecture, history, and the present.

An art experience between portrait and political memory

Since the early 1990s, Catherine Opie has developed a visual language of great clarity and emotional depth. Her works stand in the tradition of socially engaged photography but expand this with a precise, contemporary perspective on identity, community, and social conditioning. At the Fridericianum, early portrait photographs from LGBTQIA* contexts are as impactful as later series that read landscapes as resonance spaces of hope, trauma, and self-design.

Architecture as a co-actress of the exhibition

The presentation is designed as a site-specific installation. The historic building of the Fridericianum not only serves as a framework but becomes an active counterpart to the works. This creates an intense exhibition atmosphere where lines of sight, spatial effect, and image composition mutually reinforce one another. The viewing of the works becomes an aesthetic experience that transcends the individual photograph.

Imagery between landscape, protest, and the present

Work groups from more than three decades will be shown: intimate portraits, landscape photographs, documentation of Black Lives Matter, as well as images of protest marches related to the presidency of Donald Trump. Opie examines questions of belonging, social normalization, and alternative life designs in these series. This connection between personal experience and political urgency is what makes her art so influential.

Photography as cultural education

The exhibition opens a concentrated access to the central themes of contemporary photography: representation, visibility, body, community, and archive. For art enthusiasts, students, and visitors with an appreciation for art history, the show offers a demanding yet accessible engagement with an artist who has set international standards. The Fridericianum complements this with its mediation approach aimed at differentiated cultural education.

Conclusion

The pause that dreams against erasure is an exhibition of rare density: visually precise, historically aware, and socially highly relevant. Those who value photography as an art form, as a mirror of social reality, and as a space for aesthetic experience should definitely experience this presentation live in Kassel.