100 Jahre Alf Lechner: Materie Stahl
Alf Lechner
Alf Lechner would have been 100 years old on 17 April 2025 - an anniversary that provides an opportunity to rediscover his passionate exploration of material and form. We are celebrating his 100th birthday with a diverse programme of exhibitions and events including guided tours, lectures, workshops, concerts and an interactive children's programme. The retrospective sheds light on Alf Lechner's artistic development, focussing on the tense relationship between material and form. The exhibition shows works from all creative periods and illustrates how Lechner's understanding of materiality changed: from a passive material that is subordinate to form to an independent actor in the artistic process. The retrospective sheds light on Alf Lechner's artistic development, focussing on the tense relationship between material and form. The exhibition shows works from all creative periods and illustrates how Lechner's understanding of materiality changed: from a passive material that is subordinate to form to an independent actor in the artistic process.
In Lechner's work, steel is not only worked, but is also a partner in a dialogue-based process of creation. The sculptural interventions reveal the character and resistance of the material - fractures, traces and reactions are evidence of an intensive exchange between artist and material. In his late work in particular, the material emancipates itself from its traditional role and becomes a co-creator of the form.
The exhibition invites visitors to discover the aesthetic power and intrinsic logic of the material, while providing insights into the aesthetics of production and the poetic dimension of industrial materials. It presents Lechner's sculptural practice as an example of a paradigmatic change in art that places the active role of matter at the centre.
