ART COLOGNE has been a must-attend event in the art world calendar for many decades. The world's oldest surviving fair for the visual arts of the 20th and 21st centuries dates back to 1967. It dates back to 1967, when the Cologne-based gallery owners Hein Stünke and Rudolf Zwirner initiated the first Cologne art market, laying the foundation for what the Rhineland and the neighboring Benelux countries are today: an art center with the highest density of industry, capital and collections in Europe.
Around 200 international galleries present their works of art at the exhibition, including paintings, sculptures, photographs, prints, multiples, installations, performances and video artworks.
Contemporary art fair
Every year, gallery directors, art enthusiasts and collectors as well as museum greats come together in a breathtaking temporary museum of contemporary art. What is shown in the exhibition halls in Cologne-Deutz in spring is truly not an everyday occurrence.
The fair, which has been inspired by a progressive spirit since its founding days, has reinvented itself several times and has always been particularly successful when its organizers concentrate on their basic idea: the world's most important galleries show carefully curated art.
The international art jet set is just as welcome a guest as the art-interested general public. Since 2008, when the Swiss-American Daniel Hug took over the management of the fair, ART COLOGNE has once again shone with precisely this brilliance of the innovative idea of a modern art fair.
During ART COLOGNE, the beguiling hangs side by side with the disturbing at the Cologne fair. In the fast-moving art world, it is hardly worth listing the names of the galleries represented and artists exhibited. However, the basic principle is clear: Top-class European and American art forms the backdrop for a unique industry get-together with a connection to the public.
No matter where the compass of the art world points, in Cologne visitors are presented with a flash of trends between million-dollar art greats and upcoming stars. Art from all segments of modern and contemporary art is sold here in all price categories.
Platform for contemporary art
The "New Positions" and "New Contemporaries" programs are dedicated entirely to contemporary art, reliably offering a presentation platform to artists at the beginning of their careers and young galleries.
As a gateway to the international art world, ART COLOGNE is firmly integrated into the scene on the Rhine and, with numerous collaborations with major museums, offers the ideal starting point for discovering the art region of NRW.
