When does the exhibition take place?

The exhibition runs from 08.07.2026 to 19.07.2026 at Fridericianum.

How much is the admission fee?

Admission is free on Wednesdays. On other days, the regular museum prices of Fridericianum apply.

Are there guided tours?

Yes, Fridericianum offers regular public tours as well as booked tours and workshops.

Is the museum accessible?

Yes, access is possible via an external ramp and two elevators. There are also accessible restrooms.

How do I get to Fridericianum?

By tram lines 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 8 to the Friedrichsplatz station. The museum is located in the city center of Kassel.

Is photography allowed in the museum?

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

Catherine Opie at Fridericianum: Photography, Identity, and Protest in Kassel

Name: Catherine Opie: The pause that dreams against erasure
Start: 2026-07-08T13:00:00+02:00
End: 2026-07-19T20:00:00+02:00
Location: Fridericianum

Catherine Opie at Fridericianum: An exhibition about identity, memory, and resistance

With The pause that dreams against erasure, Fridericianum presents the first institutional solo exhibition of Catherine Opie in Germany. The artist has developed this presentation specifically for the historic building in Kassel. This creates an art experience where photography, film, artist books, and installation respond to the architecture and history of the art hall. The exhibition is a precisely curated panorama of over three decades of artistic work. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/jahresvorschau-2026/?utm_source=openai))

Portrait, landscape, protest: The visual worlds of Catherine Opie

Catherine Opie is one of the most influential photographers of our time. Since the early 1990s, she has developed a visual language that combines social reality with great formal clarity. Her early portraits from LGBTQIA* communities made marginalized life concepts visible and at the same time refined the view of dignity, intimacy, and self-staging. Later, she expanded her work to landscapes, city views, and political documentation. The photographs from the Freeway and City series, the images of ice fishing huts, the pictures related to Black Lives Matter and protest marches under Donald Trump: all these bodies of work connect the contemplation of work, social analysis, and aesthetic experience. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/ausstellungen/catherine-opie/?utm_source=openai))

Fridericianum as a resonance space

The exhibition exerts its impact in a house with a special aura. Founded in 1779 and profiled for decades as an international art hall, Fridericianum combines spacious architecture with a program for contemporary art, education, and public debate. This is where Opie's work gains additional tension: the historic rooms become a resonance space for questions about identity, belonging, and social imprint. The result is an exhibition atmosphere where light, space, and photography merge. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/about/))

Artistic depth and contemporary urgency

Opie draws on traditions of socially engaged photography from the 20th century and updates them with great sensitivity. Her works exist in dialogue with portrait art, documentary photography, and social sculpture in the broadest sense. This is precisely where her significance lies: the works open a space for cultural education, in which viewers not only see but also read, compare, and question. The exhibition thus not only presents images but also thought models about coexistence in a plural society. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/ausstellungen/catherine-opie/?utm_source=openai))

Visit, tours, and museum experience

Fridericianum offers regular opening hours, public tours, as well as tailored educational programs and workshops. The connections by tram, barrier-free access via ramps and elevators, and wheelchair-accessible restrooms facilitate the visit. For the exhibition, it is also valid: Admission is free on Wednesdays. This makes the visit to The pause that dreams against erasure a particularly accessible cultural experience in the heart of Kassel. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/visit/))

Conclusion: This exhibition brings together the central bodies of work of an important photographer in an impressively set presentation. Anyone interested in contemporary art, photography, identity politics, and the power of portraiture should definitely experience Catherine Opie live at Fridericianum. ([fridericianum.org](https://fridericianum.org/jahresvorschau-2026/?utm_source=openai))