The work of German-South African artist Irma Stern (1894-1966) combines motifs from her South Africa homeland with the expressionism of the Brücke artists. She captured people and landscapes in bold colours with thick, vibrant brushstrokes.

 Stern is still considered the most important representative of early 20th century art in South Africa, but her work is little known in Germany. That used to be different. Stern studied painting in Weimar and Berlin, was a founding member of the Novembergruppe and a close friend of the Brücke artist Max Pechstein. In the 1920s she exhibited in the most important Berlin galleries. The German art world celebrated her exoticizing, expressive portraits. But in 1933, after the Nazis came to power, the Jewish artist was forced to cease her extended visits to Germany.

 Based in Cape Town, she travelled extensively throughout Africa and Europe until her death. She produced an impressive and complex body of work, marked by both female emancipation and cultural appropriation.

 In close collaboration with South African museums, the Brücke-Museum presents the first solo exhibition on Irma Stern in her former home city Berlin. The exhibition features around 40 of Stern’s paintings, watercolours, drawings and prints. It is complemented by an intervention by South African artist Athi-Patra Ruga (born 1984).