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| Deutsche Gesellschaft für Kunstwissenschaft | |
|---|---|
| Name | Deutsche Gesellschaft für Kunstwissenschaft |
| Formation | 1920s |
| Type | Learned society |
| Headquarters | Berlin |
| Region | Germany |
| Leader title | President |
Deutsche Gesellschaft für Kunstwissenschaft is a German learned society dedicated to the study, documentation, and promotion of art history and visual culture. The society connects scholars, curators, museum directors, and conservators across institutions such as the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen, Kupferstichkabinett Berlin, Bundeskunsthalle, and Neue Nationalgalerie. It fosters collaboration between universities like the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Universität zu Köln, and research centers including the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz, Getty Research Institute, and Warburg Institute.
Founded in the interwar period with links to museums in Berlin, the society engaged with figures connected to the Prussian Academy of Arts, the Bauhaus, and the Deutscher Werkbund. During the postwar era it collaborated with reconstruction efforts at the Pergamonmuseum, restoration projects tied to the Dresden Frauenkirche, and provenance research associated with restitution cases stemming from the Nazi plunder. In the late 20th century the society expanded partnerships with the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, the Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, and international bodies including the International Council of Museums and the ICOMOS. Recent decades saw interdisciplinary work with the Max Planck Society, the Cluster of Excellence programs, the European Research Council, and exhibitions connected to the Documenta and the Venice Biennale.
The society’s governance reflects models from organizations such as the Goethe-Institut, the Deutscher Kulturrat, and the Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, with an elected board, advisory council, and regional chapters in cities like Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Leipzig, and Frankfurt am Main. Presidents and officers have included curators and academics affiliated with the Kunsthalle Bremen, the Städel Museum, the Alte Nationalgalerie, and the Museumsinsel. Funding streams resemble those of the Kulturstiftung des Bundes, the VolkswagenStiftung, and municipal arts foundations in Düsseldorf and Stuttgart, supplemented by membership from professionals linked to the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation and corporate sponsors such as foundations tied to the Siemens Kulturprogramm.
Programs mirror collaborations found in projects with the Deutsche Börse Photography Foundation, the Hans Arp Foundation, and the Deutsches Historisches Museum, offering seminars, postgraduate trainings, and curatorial residencies in partnership with the Humboldt Forum and the Zentrum für Kunst und Medien. The society runs workshops on provenance comparable to initiatives by the Lost Art Database and exchanges with the National Gallery, London, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Museo del Prado. Public engagement includes lecture series with scholars from the Courtauld Institute of Art, the Sorbonne, the Columbia University, and collaborations with the Berlin Senate Department for Culture.
Publishing activity encompasses journals, monographs, and catalogues raisonnés akin to outputs from the Bollmann Verlag, De Gruyter, and Spector Books, and often involves editorial boards with editors from the Zentrum für Renaissanceforschung, the Institut für Kunstgeschichte Freiburg, and the Goethe University Frankfurt. Research topics have ranged from medieval iconography linked to studies at Chartres Cathedral and the Sistine Chapel to modernist debates around Pablo Picasso, Wassily Kandinsky, Paul Klee, Marcel Duchamp, and Oskar Schlemmer. Collaborative projects addressed conservation science alongside partners like the Rijksmuseum Conservation Department, the Courtauld Institute Conservation Department, and the Princeton University Art Museum.
Annual conferences are held in rotation among venues such as the Martin-Gropius-Bau, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt, the Lichthalle der Deutschen Bundesbank and regional museums including the Schwerin State Museum and the Kunstmuseum Bonn. Thematic symposia have convened experts who also present at the Symposium on the History of Painting, the International Medieval Congress, the Renaissance Society of America meetings, and the College Art Association conference. The society organizes study trips to collections like the Uffizi, the Hermitage Museum, the Louvre, and archives such as the Bundesarchiv and the Archivio di Stato di Firenze.
The society bestows prizes and fellowships modeled after awards such as the Wolfgang Hahn Prize, the Georg Dehio Book Prize, and the Max Beckmann Prize, supporting early-career researchers and curators affiliated with institutions like the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, the Akademie der Künste, and the Bayerische Akademie der Schönen Künste. Recipients have included scholars who later held positions at the University of Oxford, the Princeton University, the University of Cambridge, and directorships at the Tate Modern, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Centre Pompidou.
The society maintains archival holdings and photographic collections comparable to those of the Bildarchiv Foto Marburg, the Getty Provenance Index, and the Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin special collections, documenting correspondence, exhibition catalogues, and conservation reports connected to artists such as Albrecht Dürer, Lucas Cranach the Elder, Caspar David Friedrich, Anselm Kiefer, and Gerhard Richter. It collaborates on digitization projects with the Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek, the Europeana initiative, the Heritage Science Hub, and museum archives at the Museum Ludwig, Kunsthalle Hamburg, and the Deutsches Technikmuseum.
Category:Learned societies of Germany Category:Art history organizations