SurFace. On Skin

2 December 2026 – 28 February 2027

Exhibition Hall of the Department of Prints and Drawings

With an area of around two square metres, the skin is the largest organ of the human body. It covers and envelops the body, delimits and protects it, and enables us to feel. Experiences and sensations are inscribed on its surface. The skin shapes our identity and serves as a projection surface for those we encounter. The exhibition SurFace. On Skin focuses on the fascinating topic of human skin. Based on selected works from the Collection of Prints and Drawings, over sixty exhibits in different media and from various eras are presented, including drawings, paintings and sculptures, from the Old Masters to contemporary art. A multi-layered panorama thus unfolds, highlighting the reproduction of skin as one of the fundamental tasks of artistic practice. The skin is revealed as a mirror of beauty and vulnerability, of youth and age, and a conduit for emotions, touch and desire. The exhibition brings together works of lesser-known artists and artists of renown, including Hans Baldung Grien, Raphael, Titian, Peter Paul Rubens, Auguste Rodin and Robert Mapplethorpe. The juxtaposition of these works reveals the similarities and differences in their depictions of skin, highlighting the diversity of creative approaches. The variety of materials and techniques employed—from brush and paint to metalpoint, chalk and charcoal, as well as three-dimensional objects—enables a sensual experience of the surface of the human body.

Sponsored by: Städelscher Museums-Verein e. V.

Find the full press release here.