Beuys 2021 Joseph Beuys Centenary Programme

Celebrating the Centenary of Joseph Beuys

Marking the centenary of Joseph Beuys' birth, 2021 will see over 30 museum exhibitions taking place internationally in Europe, America and Asia honouring his legacy. This year's centenary programme celebrates Joseph Beuys' life and work through curatorial approaches that consider his extensive oeuvre anew. We invite you to explore the centenary programme and learn more about the artist and his legacy through our overview of past and current exhibitions, as well as interviews with artists and curators for whom his work has been a source of inspiration.

Explore international exhibitions programme

Featured exhibition this month

Every one is an artist. Cosmopolitan Exercises with Joseph Beuys

27 March—15 August 2021 | K20 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen

The exhibition provides profound insight into the cosmopolitical thinking of Joseph Beuys as manifested in his actions. For here – as an acting, speaking, and moving figure – Beuys examined the central and radical idea of his expanded concept of art: »Everyone is an artist«. The goal of his universalist approach was to renew society from the ground up. In the exhibition, contemporary artists, along with representatives from the most diverse areas of society, enter into a multi-layered, transcultural dialogue with Beuys. From today’s perspective, they confirm, question or expand his theses on the possibilities of a future conceived in terms of art.

Images: 1. IMAGO / Leemage. Portrait of Joseph Beuys (1921-1986) Photography, Paris, 1985. © Bildrecht, Wien 2021. Photo: Laurence Sudre 2. Jeder Mensch ist ein Künstler, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, 2021, Foto: Achim Kukulies. 3. Joseph Beuys portrait. © Gerd Ludwig.

Learn more about Joseph Beuys