From 20 March to 9 August 2026, the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin, in collaboration with the Centre Pompidou in Paris, presents a comprehensive solo exhibition dedicated to the French sculptor Constantin Brancusi (1876–1957). Featuring more than 150 works — sculptures, photographs, films, and rarely shown archival materials — the project marks the first large-scale Brancusi retrospective in Germany in over five decades. The exhibition provides broad access to Brancusi’s exceptional body of work and highlights his position as one of the key figures of modern sculpture.
Image avobe: Constantin Brancusi, Mlle Pogany I, 1912-1913, Gips, Foto: Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI/Philippe Migeat/Dist. GrandPalaisRmn, © Succession Brancusi – All rights reserved / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2025
The exhibition brings together essential works such as The Kiss, Bird in Space, Sleeping Muse, and the iconic Endless Column, all of which rank among the most influential sculptures in art history. For the first time outside Paris, a partial reconstruction of the legendary Brancusi Studio will also be shown. Bequeathed to the French state in 1957, the studio is widely regarded as a key source for understanding the artist’s working methods — a laboratory of form in which Brancusi’s process-driven development and his distinctive handling of material, light, and spatial staging become fully visible.
After moving to Paris in 1907 following his academic training, Brancusi developed his signature reductionist visual language. His organic forms, distilled to their essential structure, positioned him as a pioneer of abstract sculpture. Brancusi’s practice is rooted in the consistent variation of a limited set of motifs, whose impact he systematically explored across different materials, surfaces, bases, lighting concepts, and through the strategic use of photography and film. The exhibition demonstrates how deeply Brancusi approached the question of the essence of form as a central, enduring concern.
Although Brancusi enjoys broad popularity in France, his work has long remained more familiar to a specialist audience in Germany. With this exhibition, the Neue Nationalgalerie strategically aims to broaden his visibility and reposition the significance of his contribution to twentieth-century art within the German cultural landscape.
The exhibition is curated by Klaus Biesenbach, Director of the Neue Nationalgalerie, and Maike Steinkamp, Curator at the Neue Nationalgalerie, in collaboration with Ariane Coulondre and Valérie Loth, Curators at the Centre Pompidou, Paris. A comprehensive catalogue will be published by Distanz Verlag, offering scholarly essays and extensive documentary material. The exhibition is made possible with the support of the FREUNDE der Nationalgalerie.
WHEN?
Exhibition dates: Friday, 20 March 2026 – Sunday, 9 August 2026
Opening: Thursday, 19 March 2026, 19:00
WHERE?
Neue Nationalgalerie
Potsdamer Straße 50
10785 Berlin
