30 May 2026 – 26 July 2026
Opening: Friday, 29 May 2026, 7 p.m.

Auf dem Rücken der Anderen
[Built on the Backs of Others]

Kunstverein Ruhr e. V.
Kopstadtplaz 12
45127 Essen
Germany

I have the pleasure of presenting a mixed-media installation designed specifically for the exhibition space at Kunstverein Ruhr. It combines excerpts from my case study, Built on the Backs of Others, on the colonial and environmental history of Venice.

Often, harshly contrasting processes are deeply entangled. Beauty is preconditioned by brutality, and scientific splendour coincides with atrocities. Venice is no exception. This case study approaches the city as a fragile relict of a glorious past. It is a sample that enables us to observe the fundamental structures and vulnerable points of global networks.

Built on the Backs of Others is the first case study for my new long-term project MACHINA MUNDI/REIGN OF REASON that I started during my residency at the Centro Tedesco di Studi Veneziani in Venice from April to June 2024. At Centro Tedesco, I received a scholarship from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. I am also very grateful for a project grant from the Dr. Christiane Hackerodt Kunst- und Kulturstiftung.

The upcoming exhibition at Kunstverein Ruhr e. V. has received project funding from the Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia and the City of Essen’s Cultural Office. I’m very grateful to the juries for their trust in my work.

10 May – 27 September 2026

Opening: Saturday, 9 May 2026, 3 p.m.

Klassenverhältnisse – die zweite Staffel Kunstlehre von 1946 bis 2026

Kunsthaus NRW Kornelimünster
Abteigarten 6
52076 Aachen – Kornelimünster

The group show explores concepts of teaching and studying art, tracing the relationships, networks, and developments among students and professors at art academies and universities in North Rhine-Westphalia. My work Diga del Vajont from 2011 has been part of the Kunsthaus NRW collection since 2018, and I’m now honoured to see it presented in such good company.   

The exhibition is curated by Dr. Marcel Schumacher and presents works by:

Jan Albers, Silke Albrecht, Ulrike Arnold, Banz & Bowinkel, Heike Kati Barath, Maximiliane Baumgartner, Tim Berresheim, Alexandra Bircken, Sabine Boehl, Axel Braun, Felix Breidenbach, Andreas Breunig, Raphael Brund, Julia Bünnagel, Heinrich Campendonk, Peter Causemann, Louisa Clement, Eli Cortiñas, Tony Cragg, Catherina Cramer, Natalie Czech, Paul Czerlitzki, Björn Dahlem, Danica Dakić, Frauke Dannert, Katja Davar, Michael Dekker, Thomas Demand, Jan Dibbets, Thea Djordjadze, Tatjana Doll, Rike Droescher, Dan Dryer, Udo Dziersk, Bogomir Ecker, Carolin Eidner, Robert Elfgen, Ayşe Erkmen, Jan Paul Evers, Angela Fette, Andreas Fischer, Alexander Föllenz, Claus Föttinger, Christian Forsen, Christian Freudenberger, Sebastian Freytag, Pia Fries, Katharina Fritsch, Sabrina Fritsch, Albrecht Fuchs, Isabella Fürnkäs, Isa Genzken, Ludger Gerdes, Ina Gerken, Martin Gerwers, Clemens Botho Goldbach, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Nicholas Grafia, Alex Grein, Camillo Grewe, Katharina Grosse, Günter Grote, Gesine Grundmann, Julia Gruner, Thomas Grünfeld, Andreas Gursky, Lukas Heerich, Fabian Heitzhausen, Paul Hempt, Georg Herold, Katharina Hinsberg, Gerhard Hoehme, Benjamin-Novalis Hofmann, Franka Hörnschemeyer, Benjamin Houlihan, Thomas Huber, Uschi Huber, Hannah Hummel, Alfonso Hüppi, Hans Paul Isenrath, Magdalena Jetelová, Anna K.E., Klara Kayser, Yury Kharchenko, Hubert Kiecol, Martin Kippenberger, Stefanie Klingemann, Karin Kneffel, Seb Koberstädt, KONSORTIUM, Jens Kothe, Gereon Krebber, Norbert Kricke, Dieter Krieg, Milan Kunc, Sarah Kürten, Kyoung-Jae Cho, Matthias Lahme, Maik Löbbert, Tim Löhde, Vera Lossau, Markus Lüpertz, August Macke, Agata Madejska, Wasa Marjanov, Bettina Marx, Ewald Mataré, Christian Megert, Franziska Megert, Florian Meisenberg, Gerhard Merz, Ulrike Möschel, Wilhelm Mundt, Ansgar Nierhoff, Philippe Nilles, Hannes Norberg, Albert Oehlen, Markus Oehlen, Michael van Ofen, Walter Ophey, Otto Pankok, Martin Pfeifle, Sigmar Polke, Lorenzo Pompa, Anys Reimann, Thomas Rentmeister, Gerhard Richter, Sebastian Riemer, Klaus Rinke, Alexander Romey, Thomas Ruff, Lex Rütten & Jana Kerima Stolzer, Leunora Salihu, Judith Samen, Heiko Schäfer, Morgaine Schäfer, Evamaria Schaller, Jan Scharrelmann, Hedda Schattanik, Silke Schatz, Agnes Scherer & Paul DD Smith, Peter Schlegel, Klaus Schmitt, Gregor Schneider, Berit Schneidereit, Ludwig Gabriel Schrieber, Jana Schroeder, Nicola Schrudde, Andreas Schulze, Ulrike Schulze, Thomas Schütte, Fritz Schwegler, Fari Shams, Lucia Sotnikova, Juergen Staack, Katharina Stadler, Pia Stadtbäumer, Junior Toscanelli, Rosemarie Trockel, Günther Uecker, Timm Ulrichs, Paloma Varga Weisz, Georg Veith, Thomas Virnich, Anna Vogel, Cornelius Völker, Corinne Wasmuht, Susanne Weirich & Robert Bramkamp, Christopher Williams, Franziska Windisch, Alex Wissel & Jan Bonny, Johannes Wohnseifer, Thomas Wrede and others 

18 JANUARY 2024
9 p.m.
 
Built on the Backs of Others / Die Landschaft Venedigs im Anthropozän
[Screening & talk in German]
 
Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften
100 Jahre Studienstiftung – Aus Begabung Zukunft machen
Taubenschlag (5. OG)
 
Host: 
Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes e.V.
[German Academic Scholarship Foundation]
 
in the framework of
 
SALON SOPHIE CHARLOTTE
“Metamorphosen”
18 JANUARY 2024
6 p.m. – 12 p.m.
Berlin-Brandenburgische Akademie der Wissenschaften
Akademiegebäude am Gendarmenmarkt
Markgrafenstraße 38
Berlin
 
In a lecture performance, I will showcase photos and videos from my ongoing case study, MACHINA MUNDI / REIGN OF REASON. Set against the backdrop of the Venetian lagoon's human-made landscapes, this project connects colonial history with the contemporary challenges posed by the Anthropocene. Please scroll down for further information.
 
Thanks a lot to Dr. Julia Apitzsch-Haack for the invitation!

3 December 2024
 
BAUHAUS MASTER LECTURE: AXEL BRAUN
 
Bauhaus-Universität Weimar
Visuelle Kommunikation
Fotostudio, Limona
Weimar
 
I will present excerpts from my long-term project, DISTURBED HARMONIES [Anthropocene Landscapes], as well as work in progress from my current case studies.
 
Thanks a lot to Pio Rahner for inviting me!

work in progress
 
THE CASCADE / ISLAND OF PEACE
 
In October, I had the chance to continue working on the case study I started last year in Georgia. 
 
The project contextualises an iconic dam from Soviet times with Caucasian mythology. A central theme is a hunting goddess whose memory is kept alive in tales, songs, and dances. Hunters fear her merciless punishment for unsustainable greed. Her archaic myths form a shared cultural heritage in a region ridden with conflict.

A travel grant from the Artists’ Contacts (Künstlerkontakte) programme of the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa) funded the research trip. 

20 November 2024

ARTIST TALK: AXEL BRAUN

The artist and photographer in conversation with Petra Schaefer

in context of

ARTE LAGUNA PRIZE
Arsenale Nord
Venice

Thank you, Petra Schaefer, for the invitation!

RESIDENCY IN VENICE
 
From 1 April to 30 June, I have had the honour and pleasure of being an artist in residence at the Centro Tedesco di Studi Veneziani. My time in Venice has been inspiring and intense. I have advanced well in my project, MACHINA MUNDI / REIGN OF REASON. In addition to a rich collection of information and visuals, I took home many unforgettable memories.

During my residence, I received a scholarship from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media. I am also very grateful for a project grant from the Dr. Christiane Hackerodt Kunst—und Kulturstiftung. I want to use this opportunity to thank Dr. PD Richard Erkens and Petra Schaefer from Centro Tedesco for trusting and supporting my work. Petra’s incredible network and relentless efforts have made many wishes a reality. Furthermore, I want to thank all institutions that granted me access to their holdings and collections, as well as my co-fellows who gave me so much inspiring input during our conversations.

A video documentation of my talk at Centro Tedesco di Studi Veneziani | Deutsches Studienzentrum in Venedig on 26 June 2024 can be accessed on YouTube (German & Italian).

26 June 2024
6 p.m.

ARTIST TALK: AXEL BRAUN

The artist and photographer in conversation with Petra Schaefer, with an introduction by Richard Erkens

Centro Tedesco di Studi Veneziani | Deutsches Studienzentrum in Venedig

Palazzo Barbarigo della Terrazza,
San Polo 2765/A, Calle Corner
Venice

19 June 2024
5 p.m. – 7 p.m.

DISTURBED HARMONIES [ANTHROPOCENE LANDSCAPES]

Main Hall, Ca’ Bottacin
Dorsoduro 3911
Calle Crosera
Venice

I will present my long-term project in the framework of the ART ECOLOGIES series of the New Institute Center for Environmental Humanities (NICHE) at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice
.

Thanks so much to Cristina Baldacci (DFBC, NICHE) and Noemi Quagliati (DFBC, NICHE) for inviting me.

Abstract:
DISTURBED HARMONIES [Anthropocene Landscapes] is a long-term research project by the Essen-based artist Axel Braun, which consists of a growing collection of case studies about controversial infrastructures and threatened ecosystems. Combining historical analysis and found footage with new photographic and video production, Braun reflects on the ecological and social consequences of an ever-expanding technosphere. His artistic practice reveals how human-altered landscapes become unintended monuments of creative (self-)destruction within the Anthropocene epoch.
 Braun will present a selection of examples from DISTURBED HARMONIES, including the new series MACHINA MUNDI/ REIGN OF REASON, and will introduce the work developed during his residency at the Deutsches Studienzentrum in Venedig, which links the colonial history of Venice with contemporary challenges for the lagoon as a built environment.

Organized by NICHE, Deutsches Studienzentrum in Venedig

Places are limited. Please register here.

I had the honour to contribute to this print publication:
 
Sammlung Kunsthaus NRW
A–Z Kunst in NRW 2000–2023
Marcel Schumacher, Elke Kania (concept)
Marcel Schumacher (ed)
funded by Ministry for Culture and Science of the federal state of North Rhine–Westphalia
Berlin: Deutscher Kunstverlag, 2024
 
ISBN: 978-3-422-80123-3
 
Two of my works are presented in the pleasant company of many great colleagues. I want to thank Ulrich Schneider for contributing an introduction.

GLAD TO BE PART OF THIS!

Standort Freigabe
Spacing (ed), 
Bremen: Verlag Marian Arnd, 2024
 
ISBN 978-3-948927-53-0
 
Documentation of the activities of SPACING [formerly ERLKÖNIG]: an exhibition project initiated by Pio Rahner in Bremen in 2015. 
 
At the peak of the first COVID lockdown in 2020, Pio invited me to participate in an exhibition in public space. SICHTEN presented photographs of views through windows on advertising displays throughout Bremen. I contributed a photo from my project DENN ES GIBT DEN FORTSCHRITT! [Because progress exists!] from 2011. Thanks a lot to Pio for the invitation, Mira Anneli Naß for the introduction, and everybody involved in making this happen!

Landscapes as Archives and Monuments
 
Recently, I published an essay with a selection of photographs in BERG2025, the yearbook of the Alpine Associations of Austria, Germany, and South Tyrol. Axel Klemmer edited this yearbook, which is thematically focused on photography. Thank you for the invitation! 
 
My essay offers examples from the history of landscape representation and its impact on collective imaginations and ideals. How do they relate to the reality of landscapes in the Anthropocene? Please email me for more information.
 
Axel Braun, “Berührt und berührend – Schwindende Sehnsuchtsorte im Bild: Landschaften als Archive und Monumente menschlichen Handelns“

in:
Deutscher Alpenverein, Österreichischer Alpenverein, Südtiroler Alpenverein (eds), Alpenvereinsjahrbuch BERG2025
Band 149 – BergFokus Fotografieren
Innsbruck: Tyrolia-Verlag, 2024, pp.96-103
 
ISBN 978-3-7022-4238-1
 
The publication is available at your local bookshop and in the online shop of Tyrolia-Verlag.