Wolfgang Hollegha (1929–2023) is a master of precise condensation and reduction. This makes him strikingly relevant at a time when visual stimuli are omnipresent. For the painter, the contemplation of nature marks the beginning of the dialogue between figuration and abstraction: “If I did not have the visible world as a starting point, what I do would be nothing but purely arbitrary smearing. I need the visible as a starting point in order to transform it.”
This attitude forms the cornerstone of his oeuvre.
At the mre, Hollegha is celebrated with his major German premiere. He ranks among the most significant Austrian painters after 1945. As early as 1960, he achieved considerable success in New York. Clement Greenberg, one of the most influential American art critics, regarded Hollegha as on a par with the protagonists of Abstract Expressionism. In the United States he exhibited alongside artists such as Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis, and Kenneth Noland. Our permanent exhibition of the Reinhard Ernst Collection allows for a moving reunion with his artistic contemporaries.
Despite this international recognition, Hollegha deliberately chose not to pursue a career in the art metropolises. In 1962 he withdrew to a farmhouse on mount Rechberg, north of Graz. Working in seclusion, he developed a richly colourful, often monumental body of work over the course of six decades.
This exhibition was a heartfelt wish of Wolfgang Hollegha. He was closely involved in planning the opening at the Neue Galerie Graz until the very end. The mre is delighted to present his work in this scope for the first time in Germany.
An exhibition by the Museum Reinhard Ernst, Wiesbaden, in cooperation with the Neue Galerie Graz/Universalmuseum Joanneum.
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25 March, 20 May, 7 October 2026, 6 pm
Guided tour with curator Lea Schäfer
Duration: 60 minutes, fee: 15 € per person
plus entrance admission
mre Wonderful Wednesday
Look & experience art from a different angle: Mindfulness is the focus of our monthly mre Wonderful Wednesday during the exhibition.
Film series Don’t Think, Look!
Immerse yourself in the thematic worlds of Wolfgang Hollegha.
Tuesday, 7 April, 8 p.m.: Die Halbzarte (AU 1958/59, director: Rolf Thiele)
Tuesday, 12 May, 8 p.m.: 1 April 2000 (AU 1952, director: Wolfgang Liebeneiner)
Tuesday, 2 June, 8 p.m.: New York Stories (US 1989, directors: Woody Allen/Francis Ford Coppola/Martin Scorsese), OV
Tuesday, 7 July, 8 p.m.: Ein ganzes Leben (DE/AU 2023, RE: Hans Steinbichler)
Further film dates will follow shortly here and on: Aktuelles Programm | Caligari FilmBühne.
Win-win! Present your cinema ticket at the museum ticket office and borrow a media guide to receive reduced admission during the month of the film screening – present your museum ticket at the cinema box office to receive reduced admission to the cooperation film screening.
A collaboration with the DFF Deutsches Filminstitut Filmmuseum Frankfurt and the Cultural Office of the State Capital of Wiesbaden.
4 March 2026, 7 pm
Spaces of Confidence – Community Building as the Key to Post-Tsunami Architecture,
Lecture with Ulf Meyer, subseq. talk with
Reinhard Ernst, Moderation Eva Authried.
11 April 2026, 7 pm–12 am
Short night of galleries and museums in
Wiesbaden, admission free
17 May 2026, 12 noon–6 pm
International Museum Day at the mre! Featuring free short guided tours of the special exhibition for families and our mre walk-ins through the foyer for all visitors. Highlight: an artist talk with Michael Anthony Müller to mark his new commissioned work for the mre.
6 June 2026, 1 pm
Pop-up performance by Graz Boy’s Choir at the
mre, included in admission price.
28 June, from 3 pm
Guided tour of the special exhibition with Daniel Hollegha, son of the painter Wolfgang Hollegha. Followed by: A conversation with Daniel Hollegha (Maki Forum), ticket €8 plus admission.
Book your tickets here soon
Catalogue: Wolfgang Hollegha
Museum Reinhard Ernst, Neue Galerie Graz (eds.),
Wienand, 2025
Price: 29,90 €
ISBN 978-3-86832-844-8
Available in our online shop and in the museum shop.
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