Exhibition program, Programm zur Ausstellung

Lecture by Charles Ray at the Neuen Nationalgalerie, Berlin

Tuesday, Aug 25, 2026, 6.30 pm – 8 pm

Neue Nationalgalerie
Potsdamer Straße 50
10785 Berlin

On the occasion of Charles Ray’s exhibition at the Fridericianum which is his first institutional solo exhibition in Germany, as part of his role as a selected guest of the American Academy, the artist will deliver a lecture titled “Marina Kellen French Lecture” at the Neue Nationalgalerie in Berlin. The presentation builds on a lecture series that Ray launched in 2015 at the Menil Collection in Houston under the title Thoughts of Sculpture and offers insights into his artistic practice and the development of his work. At the same time, he explores the ideas that have shaped his work to date, as well as the traditions that continue to influence sculpture today. There will be an opportunity for exchange and discussion in a Q&A session.

The event will be held in English. Admission is free. No registration is required.

About the artist:

Charles Ray, is one of the most important sculptors of his generation. Born in Chicago in 1953, he has lived in Los Angeles since 1981. His works have been shown at documenta 9 (1992), at three iterations of the Venice Biennale (1993, 2003, and 2013) and at six editions of the Whitney Biennial in New York (1989, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2010, and 2022). In recent years he has had major solo exhibitions and retrospectives at Kunstmuseum Basel (2014), the Art Institute of Chicago (2015), Glenstone in Potomac (in a series of installations in 2018–20, 2020/21, 2021–23, 2023/24, 2024/25, and 2025–ongoing), at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía in Madrid (2019), the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York (2022), and concurrently in the Centre Pompidou and the Bourse de Commerce–Pinault Collection in Paris (2022). He was a professor at the UCLA from 1981–2015.

The Fridericianum is proud to present Charles Ray’s first solo exhibition in Germany, which will run from August 22, 2026, until January 3, 2027.