Ida Gerhardi “… and everyone was dancing!”

Begleitprogramm

SLOW ART GUIDED TOUR
September 3, 2026 at 17:00
with Director Dr. Josephine Gabler

SCENIC READING
Oktober 8, 2026 at 18:00
with Heike Steinweg, photographer and actress, and Dr. Annegret Rittmann, editor of the Gerhardi-Letters

from August 29, until November 1, 2026

The painter Ida Gerhardi (1862–1927) is one of those female artists whose achievements and significance in her own time have been all but forgotten today. After studying at the School for Women Artists in Munich, Gerhardi lived in Paris beginning in 1891, where she established herself as a German artist. She earned a reputation as a portraitist and networker who also facilitated contacts and exhibition opportunities for fellow artists in Paris and elsewhere. She was acquainted with prominent art collectors such as Karl Ernst Osthaus, was a member of the Berlin Secession and the German Artists’ Association, and was a co-founder of the German Lyceum Club. In 1913, Ida Gerhardi was forced to leave Paris due to illness and return to her hometown of Lüdenscheid. She was able to continue her artistic work only to a limited extent.

The exhibition at the Kollwitz Museum is dedicated to Ida Gerhardi’s time in Paris, focusing in particular on her expressive paintings of dance and scenes from Parisian nightlife, as well as her striking self-portraits. Gerhardi strolled through Paris alone and visited dance halls by herself—both of which were highly unusual for a woman at the time. Beginning in 1903, she began to explore these scenes artistically. In art history, she is thus considered a pioneer, as no woman before her had painted these subjects.

During her wanderings through the bars and taverns in 1904, while on her two-month stay in Paris, Käthe Kollwitz had accompanied her, along with the art dealer Wilhelm Uhde (1874–1947). During this time, a deep affection developed between the two artists, which grew into a friendship maintained despite the physical distance. The two women also found common ground artistically in the motif of self-portraits. For this reason, the Kollwitz Museum in Berlin feels compelled to honor this fellow artist of Käthe Kollwitz in an exhibition.

Six years ago, while the museum was still at its old location, there were attempts to organize an exhibition titled Ida Gerhardi “…and everyonw was dancing”. Unfortunately, the COVID-19 pandemic thwarted two attempts to present this exhibition at the Käthe Kollwitz Museum in Berlin. It was only after the move to the Theaterbau and the completion of all construction work that this long-planned exhibition could finally be realized.

It is the artist’s first exhibition in Berlin in 25 years. Back then, the now-defunct Verborgene Museum had dedicated itself to this forgotten body of work. On display are approximately 40 paintings and drawings by Ida Gerhardi, primarily from her time in Paris around 1905.

An accompanying booklet is available (70 pages, numerous illustrations, 10 euros).