“What does realism mean today? How do artists view our present – and what images do they find to depict a reality that is constantly changing? These are the questions addressed by the exhibition ‘radikal real 2’ organised by the Künstlersonderbund in Germany. From 12 September to 11 October 2026, the RealismusGalerie in Berlin-Kreuzberg will showcase forty selected artistic works that demonstrate just how diverse and surprising realist art can be today.
Image gallery
Anette
For the Künstlersonderbund, this project is a unique experiment. For the first time, it is presenting an exhibition featuring exclusively artists who are not members of the Künstlersonderbund. The focus is deliberately turned outwards – not towards the echo chambers of social media, but into the studios. There, one can see first-hand the forms of realistic art currently emerging.
More than 140 artists responded to the call for entries. From their submissions, a jury selected forty works for the exhibition. The overwhelming response also confirms a conviction that the Künstlersonderbund, founded in Berlin in 1990, has been championing for more than 35 years: realism is alive, adaptable and a natural part of contemporary art.
However, the Künstlersonderbund does not view realism as a fixed stylistic formula or a restrictive theory. Rather, the focus is on engaging with the living world and tangible reality. The artistic styles and forms of expression are correspondingly diverse.
This diversity is immediately apparent in ‘radikal real 2’. The selected works observe, question and narrate. They respond to our present with precision, humour, empathy or disquiet. Some focus on the seemingly familiar, whilst others lead us into surprising, unsettling or dreamlike visual worlds. Reality is not simply depicted or confirmed, but examined, interpreted and made visible in a new light.
The result is a polyphonic panorama of contemporary realism – and, at the same time, an invitation to the audience to re-examine their own notions of realistic art.
- A printed catalogue is being published to accompany the exhibition. It costs €30 plus postage.
