Exhibition Recommendation: Photorealism at Museum Frieder Burda
With the exhibition *Rivalry with Reality: 60 Years of Photorealism*, Museum Frieder Burda turns its attention to one of the most consistent movements in post-World War II figurative painting
Until August 2, 2026, in Baden-Baden: RIVALRY WITH REALITY: 60 YEARS OF PHOTOREALISM - WETTSTREIT MIT DER WIRKLICHKEIT. 60 JAHRE FOTOREALISMUS - - - (ENGLISH, FRANÇAIS, DEUTSCH, NEDERLANDS, ITALIANO)
Baden-Baden. Visitors to the Museum Frieder Burda can hardly believe their eyes. Is this really a painting? One is confronted with photorealistic paintings that capture their subjects with a fidelity usually associated only with the art of photography. Photography has long since established itself as an art form in its own right, making its way into museums and major international art collections. Those who visit the Stephen Hoffman Gallery in Munich will find "blue-chip" works on the walls—images that only great photographers could see and capture. And then, a visitor might step into a painting exhibition and—once again—hardly believe their eyes. With the exhibition *Rivalry with Reality: 60 Years of Photorealism*, the Museum Frieder Burda turns its attention to one of the most uncompromising movements in post-World War II figurative painting. Emerging in the USA in the mid-1960s, this style represents an art form that takes the photographic view of the world as its starting point and reproduces it using painterly techniques to create an illusionistic effect. Returning to the subject of Munich: paintings by Richard Estes can be found there at the Jeanne Gallery—works that, again, defy the viewer's belief that they are actually paintings. One thing is certain: I intend to see this exhibition another one or even two times!
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| Baden-Baden: A poster outside the Kurpark at the town entrance—not an advertisement for a furniture store, but for a painting exhibition that leaves visitors amazed. Photo: Helga Waess (July 3, 2026 – Press Photo Archive) |
The exhibition presents over 90 visually striking works by more than 30 artists spanning six decades.
They demonstrate how the pursuit of realism was redefined through technical precision—ranging from early figures such as Robert Bechtle, Richard Estes, Ralph Goings, and Audrey Flack to contemporary international developments.
The exhibition is based on the Frieder Burda Collection, supplemented by outstanding loans from around 20 international collections, including the
- Whitney Museum of American Art in New York
- and the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza in Madrid.
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| Poster for the exhibition *Competing with Reality*, photo: Helga Waess (Press Photo Archive – July 3, 2026) |
With summer temperatures prevailing, July offers a final opportunity to visit the exhibition *Competing with Reality: 60 Years of Photorealism* in the museum’s pleasantly air-conditioned galleries; the show runs until August 2.
In an era of virtual realities that are difficult to verify, the exhibition invites visitors to question their perceptions, view the familiar from a new perspective, and explore the relationship between reality and illusion.
Gain unique insights into the exhibition through public guided tours:
- Saturdays and Sundays at 11:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m.
- Fridays at 3:00 p.m.
