Jena, March 27, 2026 – The Kunstsammlung Jena is opening a new, provocative exhibition this Friday. The well-known and sometimes controversial German contemporary artist Jonathan Meese dedicates an extensive show to the composer Richard Wagner – with a raw mixture of admiration and radical punk aesthetics.
- What: Exhibition „Jonathan Meese“ (Homage to Richard Wagner)
- When: Opening on Friday, March 27, 2026
- Where: Kunstsammlung Jena
- Content: Paintings, drawings, installations, stage designs
Concentrated Wagner Power in Red and Black
According to Jonathan Meese, Richard Wagner is „the greatest artist of all time.“ Nevertheless, visitors in Jena should not expect a classic-romantic tribute. The museum granted the 56-year-old artist „Carte Blanche,“ or completely free rein, for the design of the rooms. The results are large-format canvases in bold colors – dominated by red – featuring monstrously painted skulls, figures, and striking signets.
In addition to abstract sculptures, newly created as well as previously unknown works, the exhibition also shows a piece of failed theater history: Meese’s stage designs and costumes for a production of the opera „Parsifal“ at the Bayreuther Festspiele 2016 are on display. The project was canceled at the time. Meese himself comments on this in retrospect today with a laugh: he was furious back then, today he is just angry.
Shredded in Punk: Not for Purists?
The show in the Saalestadt sees itself as an explicit invitation to discourse. Curator Erik Stephan emphasizes that the artist’s obvious admiration is mixed with a profound critical examination. Meese takes the composer of great heroic operas apart and shreds him „properly in punk.“ For classical Wagner lovers expecting a traditional treatment, this approach is likely to be challenging.
Meese himself calls his presentation a „Trommelndes Gesamtkunstwerk de Large,“ which places myths, ideologies, and questions of unrestricted artistic freedom unvarnished in the room.
Background: Meese and the Kunstsammlung Jena
The Kunstsammlung Jena is one of the central addresses for contemporary and classical-modern art in Thüringen. By inviting Jonathan Meese, the city brings an artist to the Saale who has often caused controversy in the past – for example, through the radical use of prohibited symbols within the framework of artistic freedom during his performances. The current exhibition underlines the museum’s claim to make socially and historically polarizing discourses (such as Wagner’s controversial legacy) experienceable and discussable through contemporary works of art.
Source:
Jena: Exhibition by Jonathan Meese deconstructs Richard Wagner
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