Max Beckmann (1884–1950) is one of the great artists of modern art and a vigorous interpreter of the world and time in which he lived. Beckmann was mainly interested in people; it was people that took centre stage in his paintings. In this exhibition one can, for the first time, gain insight into the di�erent roles of femininity and masculinity in his oeuvre. Around 180 paintings, sculptures and works on paper reveal the broad scope offered by the subject matter. Beckmann’s self-portraits, the portraits of men and women of his time as well as mythological and biblical figure paintings all relate to fundamental constants of human co-existence: desire, devotion, courtship, rejection, dependency, antagonism, coalescence and the urge for freedom. While they allow a better understanding of Beckmann’s sensual, multifacetted art, they also transport the significance of the gender theme into our own current times.

The extensive Beckmann collection of the Hamburger Kunsthalle will be enriched by important loans from private and public collections at home and abroad.