Exterra XX / Erfurt Women Artists' Group: Exterra in the Air XX

As part of the exhibition Gabriele Stötzer: Be There and Don’t Stay Silent, Exterra XX—formerly the Erfurt Women Artists’ Group—is now continuing this practice in Berlin with a new performance on the roof of the Gropius Bau. It can be viewed free of charge from Niederkirchnerstraße, in the immediate vicinity of the remains of the Berlin Wall.

“We were furies, vulgar women—women who didn’t fit into any clichés, not even those of dropouts, alternatives, punks, hippies, churchgoers, or female artists,” recalls group member Monika Andres, reflecting on the early days of the Erfurt Women Artists’ Group.

Gabriele Stötzer—who had been active in the artistic underground in the GDR since the 1970s—initiated the group’s founding. Together, they created art and criticized the political system through provocative actions. With a changing lineup, between 1984 and 1994 they produced not only performances, manifestos, experimental music, photography, action painting, fashion, and graphic art, but also Super 8 films in which the group repeatedly staged performances on the rooftops of Erfurt.

Their new performance on the roof of the Gropius Bau will be accompanied by the Weimar Ensemble for Intuitive Music and will take place during the Long Night of Museums 2026 as part of the 75th anniversary of the Berliner Festspiele.

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