Most significant German contemporary artists

It's time once again to embark on a fascinating journey of discovery, because today we present to you the 14 most important contemporary artists in Germany.

In compiling this list, we have carefully combined information from various reliable sources such as Artnet, Artprice.com, Sotheby's, Saatchi and others to present you with an informed selection of major artists from Germany.

Isa Genzken

Isa Genzken is a leading contemporary German artist known for her diverse artistic practice. Her works range from sculptures and installations to photography and collages. Considered one of the most important artists of her generation, Genzken has garnered international acclaim for her innovative approach to materiality and form.

From 1969 to 1977, she studied sculpture in Hamburg, Düsseldorf, and Berlin, her current home city. For over three decades, Genzken has dedicated herself to a multifaceted and complex body of work encompassing paintings, installations, films, videos, artworks on paper, photographs, and artist's books.

She uses a variety of materials such as wood, plaster, epoxy resin, concrete, and especially plastics and everyday objects from the consumer society.

In a subtle way, the artist reflects the current reality of society through her work.

Neo Rauch

Neo Rauch , born in Leipzig in 1960, is undoubtedly one of the most important contemporary artists. His unique work has taken the art scene by storm and stands out clearly from the predictable development that the arts have undergone in recent decades.

Rauch completed his studies at the renowned Academy of Visual Arts in Leipzig under the guidance of Arno Rink, at a time when Germany and Europe were still divided.

The focus on painting in Leipzig led to the emergence of an art form that clearly stood out from the trends of the international art world. Rauch's work broke through this isolation and has enjoyed worldwide recognition since the 1990s.

Gerhard Richter

Gerhard Richter is a renowned German artist known for his diverse works and innovative approach to painting. His oeuvre ranges from abstract paintings to photographically realistic portraits, skillfully combining various techniques and styles. Richter's work has garnered worldwide acclaim and solidified his place in contemporary art history.

Gerhard Richter left East Germany in 1961 and moved from Dresden to Düsseldorf to begin his studies at the State Art Academy. There he critically examined the socialist realism of East German painting and coined the term "capitalist realism" .

With an ironic approach, Richter reflected on Western mass culture and drew on American Pop Art . Together with K. Fischer-Lueg and Sigmar Polke, he introduced Capitalist Realism into art in 1963. From 1964 onward, photographs served as the basis for Richter's paintings and drawings, which addressed everyday motifs.

Sterling Ruby

German-born artist Sterling Ruby , who develops his artistic creativity in Los Angeles, is a US-American gem of the art scene. He was born in Bitburg, Germany, to a Dutch mother and an American father, which enriches him with a diverse cultural background.

During his childhood and adolescence, he spent formative years in both Baltimore, Maryland, and the picturesque surroundings of Shrewsbury, Pennsylvania. Sterling Ruby's life journey is reflected in his multifaceted art, characterized by an impressive combination of diverse influences and experiences.

His impressive glass-ceramic sculptures and abstract paintings, , brought him international renown. His works are characterized by dark interpretations of 1960s color field painting and reference modern architecture, minimalism , and themes such as marginality, vandalism, and power structures.

Through his unique use of materials and his ability to create a completely unique visual language, Sterling Ruby undoubtedly ranks among the most important artists of the early 21st century.

Martin Kippenberger

Martin Kippenberger was a significant German artist known for his diverse works and provocative public persona. With his innovative style and critical view of society, he had a lasting impact on the contemporary art scene.

His work encompasses a wide range of media and themes, from painting and sculpture to installations and performance art . Kippenberger's unique artistic approach and creative versatility make him an important figure in 20th-century German art history.

Martin Kippenberger valued his multiples just as highly as his unique works. This attitude reflected his philosophy of life and art: from the simplest object, considered unacceptable by the art world, to the most sublime and respected theory, he could transform anything into art.

Hierarchies, topics, or different media were irrelevant to him, as long as he could express his ideas. Nevertheless, his work was always characterized by his interest in people.

Wolfgang Tillmans

Wolfgang Tillmans is a renowned German photographer and artist. Born in Remscheid in 1968, he has made a significant contribution to the contemporary art scene. His diverse body of work encompasses photographs, installations, and prints, often reflecting social and political themes.

Tillmans' innovative use of light, color, and composition makes him one of the most influential artists of his generation. His works have been exhibited in renowned museums and galleries worldwide and have received numerous awards, including the Turner Prize. Wolfgang Tillmans remains a fascinating figure in the art world and continues to set standards for contemporary photography.

Tillmans is considered a multifaceted photographer of modern life. He was awarded the Turner Prize He creates portraits, landscapes , still lifes, cityscapes, self-portraits, and, more recently, abstract works. In large-format installations, he combines completely different images, leading to unexpected associations and surprising connections.

Tillmans doesn't simply attach his pictures to the wall; he hangs them with thumbtacks or paper clips. Specifically for De Hallen, the artist will create an installation featuring landscape photographs and abstract photographic works.

Anselm Kiefer

Anselm Kiefer is a renowned German artist known for his impressive and often monumental paintings, sculptures, and installations. His works are characterized by their depth, complexity, and cultural references. Kiefer utilizes diverse materials such as lead, straw, ash, and concrete to create a unique aesthetic.

Through his art, he explores themes such as history, mythology, and identity, critically examining Germany's past. His unique style and artistic vision have made him a significant figure in contemporary German art.

Kiefer is considered one of the leading figures of "New German Painting" and Neo-Expressionism , alongside artists such as Baselitz, Immendorf, Lüpertz, and Penck. His works explore profound themes such as German national identity and German history.

Through his large-format and evocative paintings, Kiefer evokes a multitude of interpretations by deliberately avoiding definitive statements. It seems as if he processes collective memory in a subjective way and views painting as a process of reflection.

Albert Oehlen

Albert Oehlen is also a well-known contemporary German artist, renowned for his experimental approach to painting. Oehlen is known for combining diverse styles and techniques and pushing traditional boundaries in art. His works are often abstract and provocative, and his artistic vision has had a lasting impact on the contemporary art scene.

In addition to painting, Oehlen was also interested in philosophy , particularly Nietzsche. One of his most fascinating paintings is titled “The Appearance of Appearance” (1983). Oehlen’s artistic concept encompasses striking and disorienting representations of spaces, mirrors, and models. The art of illusion, the amplification of illusion, which precisely represents a reduction of ironic diversity, allows for the overcoming of the illusion of aesthetic substitute for which art stands.

What lies hidden behind the facade? The unsightly aspects of life. When illusion is reduced to the illusory, one reaches the ultimate observable reality, from which there is no return. More precisely: one encounters the unimaginable, the horrifying, the ugly. No one speaks of it; they have repressed it.

Thomas Schütte

Thomas Schütte (born 1954 in Oldenburg) is a renowned German sculptor and artist. Known for his diverse works, ranging from small-scale sculptures to monumental installations, Schütte is one of Germany's most important contemporary artists.

Thomas Schütte masters a variety of techniques and has created a comprehensive yet coherent body of work: watercolors, drawings, models, monumental and small-scale sculptures, and installations. He has developed in all these directions and skillfully interweaves the various art forms. In doing so, he adopts a theatrical approach in which the entire space is incorporated into the staging and the viewer becomes part of the presentation.

Schütte often plays with differences in size and scale: A sculpture of “normal” size suddenly appears gigantic compared to a miniature figure next to it. Schütte's forms move between reality (realized sculpture) and utopia (model for something that could potentially be implemented).

His work is of great importance and often includes textual elements.

Markus Lüpertz

Markus Lüpertz , born in 1941 in Reichenberg, now Liberec in Bohemia, is a highly respected German artist working as a painter, sculptor, and graphic artist. He is considered one of the most important and influential figures in the German art scene since the Second World War.

His art has been exhibited at the Hirshhorn Museum and the Phillips Collection in the USA, as well as the Musée d'Art Moderne de la Ville in Paris and many other renowned museums. His works are represented in important collections such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Albertina in Vienna.

He became particularly well-known as a leading figure of the "Neue Wilde" (New Wild Ones) movement in the 1980s. Markus Lüpertz is distinguished by his multifaceted artistic expression, encompassing painting, sculpture, graphic art, and poetry. His works are characterized by an often expressive and experimental approach to art. With an impressive career, he can look back on a large body of work represented in renowned museums and collections worldwide. From 1988 to 2009, Markus Lüpertz served as Rector of the Düsseldorf Art Academy .

Of particular note is the previous auction record of 350,000 euros for the work “Arrangement for a Cap I – dithyrambic” Christie’s auction in London in 2020. Markus Lüpertz leaves behind a significant cultural legacy through his fascinating art.

Andreas Gursky

Andreas Gursky , born and raised in Germany, is undoubtedly one of the most important contemporary photographic artists of our time. His impressive works fascinate viewers worldwide and have secured him a firm place in the art world.

With his unique perspective and distinctive style, Gursky succeeds in pushing the boundaries of photography and allowing us to see the world around us with new eyes. His artistic vision and creative genius make him a true master of his craft, whose influence and significance will extend for generations to come.

Andreas Gursky is undoubtedly an icon of the contemporary art world, whose images amaze us and remind us how diverse and fascinating the world of photography can be.

Andreas Gursky's works are best described as large-format panoramas that emphasize distance, order, and overview. His working method shows parallels to that of his teachers, the German photographers Bernd and Hilla Becher , particularly with regard to documentary style and camera work.

A striking difference from the works of his famous predecessors lies in the use of color, the size of the motifs, and the presence of people. The relationship between people and the structure of their environment is a central theme in Gursky's works, which address buildings, public spaces (indoors and outdoors), mass culture, and nature.

Georg Baselitz

Georg Baselitz , born Hans-Georg Kern in 1938 in Deutschbaselitz, Saxony, is undoubtedly one of the most outstanding figures in the global art world. His works have secured a permanent place in the world's most prestigious museums and art collections and continue to enjoy unbroken admiration.

His trademark of painting motifs upside down

After a turbulent start to his studies in East Germany, he moved his workspace to West Berlin, where his style was admired despite initial skepticism. His famous 1963 exhibition of provocative paintings revolutionized the art scene and made him famous overnight. Today, Baselitz is one of the world's leading artists and his works are celebrated in prestigious museums.

Awards such as the Kaiserring Art Prize demonstrate his influence in the international art world – a remarkable rise from a rebellious troublemaker to an icon of the modern art scene.

Thomas Ruff

Thomas Ruff is a German photographic artist known for his experimental approach to photography. His work ranges from portraits to abstract pieces that explore the boundaries of the medium. Ruff has received international acclaim for his innovative work and is considered one of Germany's leading contemporary photographers.

Thomas Ruff studied photography at the renowned Düsseldorf Art Academy between 1977 and 1985, where he was taught by Bernd and Hilla Becher. His fellow students included well-known photographers such as Andreas Gursky, Candida Höfer, and Thomas Struth.

Ruff's photographic career began with landscape photography, but during his studies he switched to interior photography (1979-1983) and tripod portraits of his friends. Initially, he worked in black and white before soon transitioning to color photography and using uniform backgrounds in various colors.

Hito Steyerl

Hito Steyerl (born 1966 in Munich) is a renowned German artist, filmmaker, and author. Her work is known for its critical examination of technology, globalization, and politics.

Her reflections on the impact of the internet and digitalization on our everyday lives are insightful and occasionally humorous. She illuminates the breakneck speed at which images and information are constantly adapted and disseminated, until the pace increases infinity or until it leads to collapse and dissolution.

She is considered one of the most important contemporary artists and has achieved international acclaim with her multimedia works. Steyerl's works often combine documentary elements with fictional and speculative elements, creating complex and multifaceted narratives.

Her works can be seen at numerous renowned exhibitions and festivals worldwide.