Olaf Metzel
Olaf Metzel is a German sculptor whose provocative and dynamic works engage critically with social and political issues. Born in 1952, Metzel's art often incorporates found objects and urban materials, creating sculptures that challenge conventional perceptions and provoke dialogue. His installations, frequently sited in public spaces, address themes such as historical memory, societal conflicts, and the intersection of art and everyday life.
Olaf Metzel was born in 1952 in Berlin. Since 1990 he is a Professor at the Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Munich. Metzel lives and works in Munich, Berlin and Marche.
He has held numerous solo exhibitions, including at the Neue Pinakothek, Munich, DE | Neues Museum Nürnberg, DE | Museum Küppersmühle, Duisburg, DE | Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg, DE | Schinkel Pavillon, Berlin, DE | Von der Heydt-Museum, Wuppertal, DE | Museum of Art, Ein Harod, IS | Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, DE | Hamburger Kunsthalle, DE | Haus am Waldsee, Berlin, DE | Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, DE | Westfälisches Landesmuseum, Münster, DE.
In addition he participated in documenta 8 and Skulptur-Projekte Münster in 1987 and 1997. In 1984 and 1990, he participated in the Sydney Biennale, in 1995 and 2015 in the Istanbul Biennale, and in 2001 in the São Paulo Biennale.
Olaf Metzel’s sculptures in public spaces are to be found in Germany, other European countries, and Asia. Works by him are held in the following collections: Arp Museum Bahnhof Rolandseck, Remagen, DE | Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen, Munich, DE | Burger Collection, Berlin, DE | Collezione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, Turin, IT | Hamburger Kunsthalle, Hamburg, DE | Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf, DE | Kunstsammlung im Ständehaus, Düsseldorf, DE | Kunstmuseum Bonn, DE | Kupferstichkabinett, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Preußischer Kulturbesitz, DE | Museum Ludwig, Cologne, DE | Pinakothek der Moderne, Munich, DE | Sammlung Ackermans, Museum Kurhaus Kleve, DE | Sammlung Deutsche Bank, DE | Sammlung Falckenberg, Hamburg, DE | Sammlung Landesmuseum Münster, DE | Sammlung Munich Re, Munich, DE | Sammlung René Block, Berlin, DE | Sammlung zeitgenössischer Kunst der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn, DE | Staatsgalerie Stuttgart, DE | Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus, Munich, DE | The Margulies Collection, Miami, US | Weserburg Museum für moderne Kunst, Bremen, DE | ZKM, Karlsruhe, DE.
- Oberkante Unterlippe , 2024
- Respect (Aretha Franklin), 2022
- béton brut, 2021
- Berliner Kindheit, 2020
- Baise moi, 2019
- King Kong Theorie, 2019
- Gio Ponti, 2018
- Kottbusser Tor, 2017
- Luther rauf und runter, 2017
- Joe Dallesandro (Trash), 2016
- Kafka usw., 2016
- Lúcio Costa (1), 2016
- Plattenbau, 2016
- Swimmingpool (1), 2016
- dermaßen regiert zu werden, 2015
- Lampedusa, 2015
- Maidan III, 2015
- Sozialtapete, 2015
- Steve McQueen, 2015
- b/w-L.A., 2014
- L.A. Riots (Rodney King), 2014
- NSU, 2013
- Utopia, 2012
- Benvenuti a Napoli, 2010
- Gio Ponti, 2010
- Und dann noch das Wetter, 2010
- Kebap Monument, 2007
- Milieufragen, 2007
- Cashflow, 2005
- Reise nach Jerusalem, 2002
- Deutsche Kiste, 1997
- Auf Wiedersehen, 1996
- Freitreppe, 1994
- Sammelstelle, 1992/2013
- 112 : 104, 1991
- Idealmodell / PK 90, 1991
- 13.4.1981, 1987
20 Years – An Anniversary Show
WENTRUP, Berlin13 Sep - 16 Nov 2024WentrupRead moreAnastasia Samoylova & Olaf Metzel
31 Mar - 10 Jun 2023Wentrup am FeenteichWe are pleased to announce a double exhibition by photographer Anastasia Samoylova and sculptor Olaf Metzel. In their works, both Samoylova and Metzel negotiate current political issues and provoke reflection...Read moreDritte Hängung
26 Mar - 14 Aug 2022Wentrup am FeenteichWentrup is pleased to present the third group exhibition at WENTRUP am Feenteich, featuring works by Nevin Aladag, Jenny Brosinski, Anna Fasshauer, Günther Förg, Gregor Hildebrandt, Olaf Metzel, Gerold Miller,...Read moreWentrup am Feenteich
22 Aug - 31 Oct 2021Wentrup am FeenteichHoused in a three-storey mansion with an outdoor sculpture garden, Wentrup am Feenteich will be a unique destination for art collectors, professionals and enthusiasts from across the world that fosters...Read moreOlaf Metzel – Berliner Kindheit
12 Dec 2020 - 27 Feb 2021WentrupWentrup is pleased to present the forth solo exhibition of Munich based sculptor Olaf Metzel (*1952 in Berlin, Germany) in the gallery.Read moreZoom In Zoom Out
7 May - 18 Jul 2020WentrupNevin Aladag, Hicham Berrada, Miriam Böhm, Louisa Clement, Mariechen Danz, Axel Geis, Thomas Grünfeld, Karl Haendel, Gregor Hildebrandt, John McAllister, Florian Meisenberg, Olaf Metzel, Peles Empire, David Renggli , Wawrzyniec...Read moreOlaf Metzel
16 Mar - 13 Apr 2019WentrupGalerie Wentrup is pleased to inaugurate its new gallery space in Berlin-Charlottenburg with an exhibition of works by the sculptor Olaf Metzel. The gallery has moved to a listed brick...Read moreOlaf Metzel – Plattenbau
29 Apr - 17 Jun 2017WentrupOlaf Metzel’s second solo exhibition in the Wentrup gallery presents new works under the title Plattenbau [prefabricated apartment building usually made of concrete slabs]. For Metzel, the “Platte” (‘pre-fab’; literally:...Read moreOlaf Metzel – Gelbes Mauerstück
11 Mar - 19 Apr 2014WentrupRead more
Olaf Metzel – Deutschstunde
Castle and Park Belvedere and Liszt-Haus, Weimar, DE7 Jun – 1 Nov 2024, June 7, 2024Olaf Metzel – umsonst und draußen
Public artwork: Bauhausplatz, Munich, DEFrom 2021 onwards, October 9, 2021Olaf Metzel – Aus der Kurve
Kunstverein Heilbronn, DE16 Mar – 23 Jun 2013, March 16, 2013
Chambre d'Amis at Olaf Gulbransson Museum, Tegernsee
July 25, 2025We are pleased to invite you to the Chambre d'Amis, an exclusive art salon that will take place for the first time from July 27...Read moreOlaf Metzel – Das Plastische Alphabet
Publication November 14, 2024This monograph brings together Olaf Metzel's artistic practice from the early 1980s to the present day in alphabetical order for the first time. The richly...Read moreDie Schönheit der Stille. Stillleben von 1900 bis heute
Publication featuring John McAllister and Olaf Metzel October 16, 2024Between beauty and transience, between splendour and traces of profane everyday life - still lifes have found their way into art history as an independent...Read moreOlaf Metzel – German Lesson
Belvedere Castle and Liszt-Haus, Weimar 7 Jun – 1 Nov 2024What can we learn from history? Is there really any lesson that we can apply to our present day? And who exactly is “we”? Few...Read moreDie Schönheit der Dinge. Stillleben von 1900 bis heute | Kunsthalle Emden
Group Show featuring John McAllister & Olaf Metzel 18 May – 10 Nov 2024 Read more
Olaf Metzel
Keinen Meter zurück 2022Read moreOlaf Metzel
Olaf Metzel at Ein Harod 2018Read moreOlaf Metzel
I like the black square more than the red flag 2018Read moreOlaf Metzel
Hans von Marées. Eine Annäherung / An Approach 2016Read moreOlaf Metzel
dermassen regiert zu werden 2016Read moreOlaf Metzel
From the TV to the Fridge Read moreOlaf Metzel
noproblem 2007Read moreOlaf Metzel
Gegenwartsgesellschaft 2013Read moreOlaf Metzel
1984Read moreOlaf Metzel
Kaffee, Zeitung, Zigaretten 2013Read moreOlaf Metzel
Zeichnungen 2006Read moreOlaf Metzel
Günther Förg – Olaf Metzel, fünzig fünfzig 2003Read moreOlaf Metzel
Fotoheft 2001Read moreOlaf Metzel
Zeichnungen 1985–1990 1990Read moreOlaf Metzel
Skulptur 1982Read more
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