Franz Ackermann

Franz Ackermann received the Art Prize of the City of Nordhorn in 1997, and in 2005, he was recognized with the "mfi Preis Kunst am Bau" for his work on the renovation of the Munich underground station "Georg-Brauchle-Ring" (completed in 2003).

Biography of Franz Ackermann

Franz Ackermann, born in Neumarkt St. Veit in 1963, currently resides and works in Karlsruhe and Berlin, Germany. From 1984 to 1988, he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts München. From 1989 to 1991, Ackermann attended the University for Fine Arts in Hamburg.

Since 2001, the artist has worked as Professor at Academy for Fine Arts Karlsruhe.

Ackermann's art has adorned the walls of galleries and museums around the world, with notable solo exhibitions at prestigious venues such as the PIFO Gallery in Beijing, Dirimart in Istanbul, and the Berlinische Galerie in Berlin. His remarkable body of work has also left its mark on public spaces, including the Munich underground station "Georg-Brauchle-Ring" and the Bundeskanzleramt in Berlin.

Furthermore, Ackermann's artistic contributions can be found in numerous public and private collections, including the MoMA collection, the Denver Art Museum, and the Irish Museum of Modern Art, to name a few.

In 1991, he received the prestigious DAAD grant, opening the door to his first voyage to Asia and a year-long stay in the bustling metropolis of Hong Kong. 

Franz Ackermann's Art Style

Franz Ackermann draws inspiration from practices like situationist deviation and psychogeography, breathing life into his works through a blend of photography and sketches executed in pencil, ink, and watercolor. These visual records of his travels serve as the foundation for his "mental maps," which are not mimetic reproductions of the physical world. Instead, they are striking syntheses of both the tangible and the mental realms.

From these maps, Ackermann weaves intricate tapestries of vibrant colors that confront viewers with a unique perspective—an amalgamation of pictorial, geographical, and architectural spaces into one captivating tableau. His artistic network unfolds much like the roots of a tree, spreading in all directions without the constraints of a hierarchical system. The result is a chaotic yet dynamically energetic force as if gravity itself compels these collages and ornaments to expand.

Franz Ackermann's paintings often evoke memories of his urban explorations. His works reflect not only the spatial intricacies of cities but also the mental landscapes that cities represent within a broader urban network. For him, the urban structure becomes a model for understanding cultural and social systems of reference.