In 2027, the Kunsthochschule Kassel (KhK) will celebrate its 250th anniversary. The anniversary commemorates the founding of the ‘L’Académie de Peinture et de Sculpture de Cassel’ on 18 October 1777 by Landgrave Friedrich II of Hesse-Cassel and honours the institution’s development from an 18th-century art academy into an internationally renowned centre of education and research for art, design and science.
Throughout its history spanning almost 250 years, the Kunsthochschule Kassel has continually reinvented itself. Key milestones included the integration of the Hochschule für Bildende Künste Kassel into the Gesamthochschule Kassel in 1971, as well as the founding of what is now the Kunsthochschule Kassel in 1997 through the merging of the departments of Art, Design and Visual Communication, as well as the degree programmes in Art History and Art Education.
A selection of prominent figures exemplifies the diverse work of the Kunsthochschule Kassel and its historical predecessor institutions. As lecturers or graduates, they have had a lasting influence on the development of art, design and scholarship, and have gained national and international recognition far beyond Kassel through their artistic, creative and scholarly work. They include, amongst others, Amalie Tischbein (1757–1839), Arnold Bode (1900–1977), Hans Haacke (born 1936), Günter Kupetz (1925–2018), Floris Neusüss (1937–2020), Dorothee von Windheim (b. 1945), Gunter Demnig (b. 1947) and Lorenza Böttner (1959–1994).
The anniversary year 2027 provides an opportunity to look back on this eventful history and, at the same time, to turn our attention to the future development of the Kunsthochschule Kassel. We will provide information about the programme and events for the anniversary year 2027 in due course next year.
Further information on the history of the Kunsthochschule Kassel can be found at:
kunsthochschulekassel.de