The Ruhr region is a unique cultural landscape, which also has a special density and diversity of museums. To mark the 15th anniversary of the RUHR.2010 project, in which the Ruhr region was presented as the European Capital of Culture, a special exhibition is opening at Villa Hügel in Essen: 21 museums from 16 cities in the Ruhr region are exhibiting together in 21 x 21. Die RuhrKunstMuseen auf dem Hügel. The works of art range from the beginnings of the 20th century to the present day and represent many important national and international art movements. Regional artists meet international celebrities. At the same time, the show is a reflection of the economic upswing in the Ruhr region, as a result of which art was also collected extensively, as well as a new democratic spirit of optimism in the post-war period, when many of the participating museums were founded. The show can be seen in Essen from April 11 to July 27. Since November, the organizers have already been offering the opportunity to explore an extended form of the exhibition with over 400 works of art digitally.
Each of the 21 museums selected an »impulse work« for the exhibition that represents the focus of the museum's collection. Some works also reflect the main themes of the exhibition, such as August Macke's Modes: Woman with Parasol in Front of a Hat Shop (1914), which is in the collection of the Folkwang Museum in Essen. Here, Macke addresses the emerging consumer culture in the early 20th century, a radical upheaval in social history. The exhibition also includes works by Marc Chagall, Gudrun Kemsa, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Ibrahim Mahama, Paula Modersohn-Becker, Ulrich Möckel, Gerhard Richter, Morgaine Schäfer, Emil Schumacher, Frank Stella, Grete Stern, Rosemarie Trockel and Guenther Uecker.
