Bye and Hello – an interview with Alicia Holthausen
In our magazine, we feature conversations with people from the art and culture scene who have a special connection to Düsseldorf. Through exciting insights and personal stories, our interview partners reveal the city’s complexity and the richness of its institutions.
In this edition, we speak with Alicia Holthausen, the new curator of Kunsthalle Düsseldorf, about the museum’s role in the city’s art scene and its future plans. Built in 1967, the Kunsthalle’s brutalist architecture is set to undergo a two-year renovation starting in 2026. “1 Kunsthalle, 2 years of renovations, 50 districts, 100 artists” – under this motto, the Kunsthalle aims to continue showcasing contemporary art across Düsseldorf while the renovations are underway.
Tune in to read about the Kunsthalle, its vision for the future, and its role within Düsseldorf’s art landscape – Alicia Holthausen shares all the details.
Portrait Alicia Holthausen. Photo: Katja Illner.
I have always wanted to create cultural experiences—both by enabling artists to realize their ideas and by making their work accessible to audiences. I started working at the Open Source Festival here in Düsseldorf straight after leaving school, a cultural festival that also organized many events throughout that year – exhibitions, concerts, artist-in-residence programmes and its own congress. I also studied art history. Since 2020, Since 2020, I have been responsible for curation and exhibition production at Kunsthalle Düsseldorf, serving as Deputy Artistic Director since last year and as Interim Artistic Director since January. I have always been particularly influenced by the people I have worked with and met.
It is difficult to choose a project that is particularly close to my heart, but Journey Through A Body was a great experience and an important topic: an exhibition in which we examined body perceptions in the context of gender identities and self-identification and, in addition to a great exhibition, we also realized a very interesting program of events via an open call and a very unusual publication.
Our theme for 2025 is “Farewell to the Kunsthalle”, as the brutalist building from 1967 will be closed and renovated for up to three years starting next year.
The next exhibition, opening on March 14, is a collaboration with the VdDK (Verein der Düsseldorfer Künstler), an artists’ association founded in 1844 and one of the oldest still-active collectives of its kind in the world. To celebrate its 181st anniversary, we invited all members to participate—223 out of 300 artists will be presenting their work. Visitors to Art Düsseldorf will have the chance to experience a vibrant cross-section of Düsseldorf’s artist community.
For those who want to come by later in the year, the 13-week exhibition IM KINOSAAL (June 7 to September 7) will feature a different audiovisual project every week in our largest exhibition space, drawing on Düsseldorf’s rich history of music and sound. At the same time, the winners of this year’s Bernd and Hilla Becher Prize of the City of Düsseldorf: Ursula Schulz-Dornburg and Farah Al Qasimi.
This will be followed by our art book fair Between Books from September 19 to 21 and, from October 11, our last exhibition before the renovation, in which we ask ourselves: Where to? and look into the future of the Kunsthalle, but also the future of cities and societies in general, and invite creative people from a wide variety of fields to share their visions of the future for our shared coexistence with us.
Kunsthalle Düsseldorf. Photo: Achim Kukulies.
Our program runs until January 2026. After that, we will move out of the building so that the refurbishment, which will take up to three years, can begin in April 2026. The primary focus of this refurbishment is energy efficiency, as the building currently loses a significant amount of energy through its façade—much of which, along with the infrastructure behind the walls, dates back to the 1960s. Another key priority is improving accessibility, which is currently lacking in large parts of the building. Recently, the Kunsthalle was granted heritage status, meaning its brutalist exterior will be preserved. While the building’s appearance will remain largely unchanged, the renovations will significantly improve its sustainability and usability.
During the three-year renovation period, Kunsthalle Düsseldorf will become a nomadic institution, bringing exhibitions and events to all 50 districts of Düsseldorf. We plan to collaborate with other institutions, independent art spaces, vacant buildings, and public spaces, ensuring that contemporary art remains accessible and present throughout the city.
We developed the “Tschüss – Hallo” format because we wanted to actively involve our visitors in shaping the future of the Kunsthalle Düsseldorf. In October last year, we began asking visitors about their wishes for the Kunsthalle of the future. This will be accompanied by a series of events in which we would like to engage in discussions, workshops and artistic interventions. The mot recent event in the series took place on March 6: An evening with artist Jan Kamensky, who creates utopian animations in which he transforms urban (and often busy) places into future spaces worth living in.
Personally, I believe that the future of cultural buildings lies in greater openness and inclusivity. This is a crucial issue for institutions worldwide: moving away from the traditional “ivory tower” perception of the art world and toward spaces that truly welcome everyone. This transformation is not only about architecture but also about programming and engagement—rethinking how we create and share culture in ways that invite broader participation.
Installation View: SHEILA HICKS, Kunsthalle Düsseldorf 2024
© VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024. Photo: Katja Illner
Contemporary art often faces the challenge of first having to justify itself as art, while simultaneously being sold for millions in an increasingly irrational art market. It creates a fascinating tension—on one hand, people question why a banana taped to a wall is considered art at all, and on the other, it sells for $6.2 million and is then eaten by the buyer.
As an institution, our goal is to contextualize such phenomena while also fostering an emotional connection between visitors and contemporary art. A key question in our daily work is: What does this artwork evoke in you? The response doesn’t have to be positive—on the contrary, negative reactions can be just as valuable for discourse. Often, emotions and personal experiences provide a more engaging entry point into conversations about art than dry facts and figures.
I observe many people in my environment who are involved with artists’ books and have been a frequent guest at art book fairs over the past ten years, which I have always found to be an incredibly exciting and dynamic place. The exhibitors are always passionate about their publications and spend hours talking to visitors about unusual and innovative ways of publishing. As there was no (longer) an art book fair here in the Rhineland, we thought about closing this gap in 2023 and quickly realized that we had really hit a nerve. Even at the first edition, we received significantly more applications than we had stands available and around 4,500 visitors in 3.5 days – a great response! This year will be the third edition of Between Books, again with around 80 exhibitors and 20 events ranging from talks and workshops to performances.
Düsseldorf has a wider selection of art and cultural venues than almost any other city of a similar size, so it’s difficult to make a choice. Apart from the larger venues, which of course all have a great program worth seeing, I would recommend the numerous off-spaces, such as BLOOM or AURA, both on Birkenstraße in Flingern. The Julia Stoschek Foundation in Oberkassel, which specializes in time-based art, is definitely worth a visit. If you have a little more time, you should head out to Hombroich Island in Neuss; the beautiful nature in combination with the magnificent buildings by Erwin Heerich and the contemporary art there is simply unique.
Düsseldorf has always been a key hub for the art world. I often hear from international guests that the only thing they know about Düsseldorf is: “The art scene is fantastic” (the second thing I heard recently was: “and the women wear too much jewellery”, which made me laugh). The Düsseldorf Art Academy remains a leading institution and has recently appointed several young professors, bringing fresh perspectives for the next generation of artists. The city also offers a diverse mix of museums, galleries, and independent art spaces, ensuring that there’s always an exhibition opening somewhere. To my knowledge, the studio situation has also improved somewhat, making it easier for younger artists to find affordable workspaces.
For the Düsseldorf art scene, and the art world in general, I hope to see openness to new ideas, a willingness to experiment, and a sense of enjoyment in the creative process. At the same time, I hope for the courage to continue working toward an inclusive and diverse society.
