Art Talks
From Friday to Sunday, 1–3 May 2026, Gallery Weekend Berlin’s Art Talks program will once again transform Neue Nationalgalerie’s iconic glass hall into a space for discourse, debates, and thought-provoking discussions. Free of charge and open to the public, Gallery Weekend Art Talks will feature a selection ofexhibiting artists, local luminaries, and international guests. Several talks will take place daily, providing a central hub and opportunities for encounters and exchanges among curators, artists, and the public. Exhibiting artists will engage in conversations with curators from German and international institutions,shedding light onto their practices and newly opened exhibitions in Berlin. Panel discussions with a range of speakers, including curators and art experts, will explore new ways of activating museum spaces and address the question of what the future of the art world might have in store. Additionally Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie für Gegenwart is hosting two talks on Friday.
All talks will be held in English, except for the conversation between Markus Lüpertz and Dorothea Schöne, which will take place in German.
Neue Nationalgalerie
Friday, 1 MAY 2026
11:00 am
The Future of the Art World
with Marion Ackermann (President, Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation), Grace Yao (Founder and CEO, Artlas), and Thomas Girst (Global Head of Cultural Engagement, BMW Group)
moderated by András Szántó (author and cultural strategy advisor)
12:30 pm
From the Internet to Museum Walls
Beeple in conversation with Lisa Botti (Curator, Neue Nationalgalerie)
2:00 pm
Simulacra, Soap Operas, and Sacrifice
Göksu Kunak (Ebensperger) in conversation with Léon Kruijswijk (Performance Curator, Mudam Luxembourg)
3:30 pm
On Craft and Unexpected Materiality
Pae White (neugerriemenschneider) in conversation with Kimberly Bradley (art critic, culture writer, and editor)
5:00 pm
Photographic Vertigo
Ketuta Alexi-Meskhishvili (Galerie Molitor) in conversation with Carina Bukuts (Chief Curator, Kunsthalle Wien)
Saturday, 2 MAY 2026
11:00 am
The Challenge of Live Art in Museum Spaces
with Joel Valabrega (Head of Programme and Curator, Galeria Municipal do Porto), Matilde Guidelli-Guidi (Curator and Co–Department Head, Dia Art Foundation), Billy Tang (Artistic Director, YDP)
moderated by Gregor Quack (Volkswagen Group Curator, Neue Nationalgalerie)
12:30 pm
about curating
Thomas Demand (Sprüth Magers) in conversation with Lynne Cooke (curator and writer)
2:00 pm
Hermetic Worlds and Total Constellations
Stella Zhong (Trautwein & Herleth) in conversation with Martin Germann (curator)
3:30 pm
On Intuition, Memory, and Becoming
Edi Rama (Société) and Anri Sala in conversation with Natalia Gierowska (political scientist and art critic)
Sunday, 3 MAY 2026
11:00 am
The Power of Abstract Figuration
Katherine Bradford (Haverkampf Leistenschneider) in conversation with Chloe Stead (Associate Editor, Frieze)
12:30 pm
Ecological Transience and Fantastical Transformation
Anne Duk Hee Jordan (alexander levy) in conversation with Haeju Kim (Senior Curator and Head of Residencies, Singapore Art Museum)
2:00 pm
Die Überwindung der Moderne
Markus Lüpertz (Galerie Michael Werner) in conversation with Dr. Dorothea Schöne (Director Kunsthaus Dahlem) This talk will be held in German.
Global Collectors Talks at Hamburger Bahnhof - Nationalgalerie für Gegenwart
Friday, 1 MAY 2026
2:00 pm
Collecting Beyond Borders
Ku Dahoe (FUTURA SEOUL), Tracy O’Brien (Hammer-Chair of Hammer Circle Los Angeles), Disapol Chansiri (Collector Bangkok) in Dialogue with Christine Würfel-Stauss (Leadership Council Hamburger Bahnhof International Companions e.V.)
3:00 pm
Community and Ownership: What Remains for the Future
Clara Meister (Collection Hoffmann Berlin), Angelo Chan (Public Art Fund New York) in Dialogue with Till Fellrath (Hamburger Bahnhof – Nationalgalerie der Gegenwart)