Civilization. The Way We Live Now
The groundbreaking exhibition at Kunsthalle München featuring the works of Michael Najjar

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Never have more people lived on Earth, never has our impact on the planet been greater, never have we been more closely interconnected than today—moreover, our society is changing at an ever-increasing pace. Civilization: The Way We Live Now follows humanity’s visible traces around the globe from the perspective of more than 100 internationally renowned photographers. The exhibition sheds light on various aspects of our highly complex coexistence—from humankind’s great achievements to our collective failings. In the year of its 40th anniversary, Kunsthalle München is dedicating this exhibition to the question of how we live today, illustrating both civilization’s diversity and contradictions.

Civilization focuses on cultures from every continent: from the way we produce and consume, to how we work and play, travel and live, think and design, collaborate and clash. In a time where it seems that people and opinions are drifting further and further apart and urgently needed consensus seems increasingly unattainable, this exhibition focuses on what we have in common. Since Edward Steichen’s groundbreaking 1955 photo exhibition, The Family of Man, it is the first show to take such a comprehensive look at our world and at what we care about: home, work, leisure, transport, communication, education, science, and technology.

Civilization is an exhibition about contemporary photography, a medium which can also be seen as a collective civilizational endeavor: together, photographers are creating a multifaceted portrait of our time. All over the world, they are busy documenting, interpreting, and capturing the way we live. The result is a cross-section ranging from documentary projects to decidedly subjective stagings. Rather than taking a judgemental position, the associative compilation of varied and surprising works aims to inform, entertain, and inspire. Viewers are invited to reflect on similarities and differences and to engage in open discourse. Next to renowned artists such as Candida Höfer, Edward Burtynsky and Thomas Struth, Michael Najjar, the exhibition also features younger mid-career photographers such as Pablo López Luz, Sheng-Wen Lo and Julia Chamberlain, among others.

Civilization was initiated by the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Korea, and the Foundation for the Exhibition of Photography, Minneapolis/Lausanne. Since 2018, it has been featured in Seoul, Beijing, Melbourne, London, and Taipei, among others. The exhibition is now presented at the Kunsthalle München in an updated form and complemented by many works addressing current issues such as the COVID pandemic and artificial intelligence. In 2026, the exhibition will be on view at the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich, Switzerland.

Learn more by visiting Kunsthalle München

When

Starts: 11 April 2025
Ends: "4 August 2025

Where

Kunsthalle München
Theatinerstrasse 8
80333 Munich, Germany

Information

kontakt@kunsthalle-muc.de;+49 (0)89/22 44 12
Curated by: William A. Ewing and Holly Roussell
Press release: download here

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