ANNETTE KELM

In her work, Annette Kelm (b. 1975, Stuttgart, Germany) is interested in the function of objects and the nature of their representation, typologies, mass production, design, and technology. Her photographs often conflate several genres into single images, or develop single motifs across serial images to combine a variety of artistic, historical, and cross-cultural references. Kelm lives and works in Berlin.

In 2023, Andrew Kreps Gallery presented Present Past Perfect, Kelm's fifth solo show with the gallery. Other solo exhibitions of the artist’s work have been presented at numerous international institutions, including ICA Milano, 2022, Kunsthalle zu Kiel, 2022, Museum Frieder Burda | Salon Berlin, 2020, the Fosun Foundation, Shanghai, 2018, Kunsthalle Wien, Vienna, 2018, Kestnergesellschaft, Hannover, 2017, Museum of Contemporary Art, Detroit, 2016, Kölnischer Kunstverein, Cologne, 2014, Bonner Kunstverein, Bonn, Germany, 2011 and KW – Institute for Contemporary Art, Berlin, 2009, among others.

This year, Kelm was shortlisted for the Pauli Prize, one of Germany's most prestigious awards for contemporary art. The exhibition featuring the works of the eight shortlisted artists will take place at the Kunsthalle Bremen from August 8 through September 15, 2026. Additionally, her work will be included in Wir. 19 Grundrechte. 19 künstlerische Positionen. Ein Gesprächsraum, Forum Kunst im Bundestag, Berlin,

In the last years, Kelm's work was included in numerous group exhibitions, including: Nationalgalerie: A Collection for the 21st Century, Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart, Berlin, Germany, 2026; So wie wir sind, Museum Weserburg, Bremen, 2026; Seeing Words, Reading Images, Deutsche Bank Collection, Palais Populaire, Berlin, 2026; Inaugural Exhibition, The Campus, Hudson, NY, 2024; Future Perfect, Contemporary Art from Germany, Narodni Muzej Crne Gore, Cetinje, Montenegro, 2024; Das Bild ist, was es tut. Bilder aus der Sammlung, Sprengel Museum Hannover, Hannover, Germany, 2024; Extreme Collection, Frac Grand Large, Hauts-de-France, Dunkerque, France, 2024; Alte und neue Freunde. Von Refik Anadol bis David Zink Yi, Collection Andra Lauffs-Wegner, Bad Honnef-Rhöndorf, Germany, 2024.

In addition to her participation in the 54th Venice Biennale, 2011, Kelm’s work has also been part of important institutional group exhibitions including Nationalgalerie. Eine Sammlung für das 21.Jahrhundert, Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin, 2023; The King is Dead, Long Live the Queen, Museum Frieder Burda, Baden-Baden, 2023; Deep Deep Down, The Contemporary Art Museum of Luxembourg, Luxembourg, 2023; Something New, Something Old, Something Desired, Kunsthalle Hamburg, Hamburg, 2022; Changes, Museum moderner Kunst Stiftung Ludwig Wien, Vienna, 2022; Die Sonne um Mitternacht schauen, Lenbachhaus München, Munich, 2021; Triennial for Photography and New Media, Henie Onstad Kunstsenter, Hovikodden, Norway, 2020; Tell me about yesterday tomorrow, Munich Documentation Centre for the History of National Socialism, Munich, Germany, 2019; Collected by Thea Westreich Wagner and Ethan Wagner, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 2015, traveled to Centre Pompidou, Paris, 2016; and New Photography, MoMA, New York, 2013, among others.

Kelm’s work is included in the permanent collections of Badisches Landesmuseum, Karlsruhe, Germany; Centre Pompidou, Paris, France; Dallas Museum of Art, Dallas, USA; Frac de Pays de la Loire, Nantes, France; Henry Art Gallery, Seattle, USA; Hammer Museum, Los Angeles, USA; Hessel Museum of Art, Annandale-On-Hudson, NY, USA; Kaiser Wilhelm Museum, Krefeld, Germany; Kulturstiftung des Bundes, Halle an der Saale, Germany; Kunsthaus Zürich, Switzerland; Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, Germany; Lenbachhaus München, Germany; LWL Museum für Kunst und Kultur Münster, Germany; Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, UK; MOCA Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, USA; Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg, Germany; Museum of Contemporary Art, Chicago, USA; MoMA Museum of Modern Art, New York, USA; Museum Moderner Kunst Wien, Austria; Sprengel Museum, Hannover, Germany; Sammlung Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Hamburger Bahnhof, Berlin; Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, New York, USA; Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, Germany; Tate Modern, London, UK; and Walker Art Center, Minneapolis, USA.

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