In addition, Monika Sprüth showed conceptual artists such as Peter Fischli / David Weiss and Louise Lawler, photographers Andreas Gursky and Thomas Demand and painters Andreas Schulze, George Condo, Axel Kasseböhmer and Thomas Scheibitz, many of whom have been with the gallery for over 20 years.
Philomene Magers inaugurated her first gallery in 1991 in Cologne. Her focus lay with older artists, whose influence on the generation of the 90’s was becoming increasingly prominent: Donald Judd, Robert Morris, Dan Flavin, Ad Reinhardt, John Baldessari, Richard Artschwager and Ed Ruscha. Her programme expanded further to encompass the works of younger artists such as Sylvie Fleury and Karen Kilimnik.
Monika Sprüth and Philomene Magers’ mutual interest in building their respective galleries’ programmes around theoretical art discourse and maintaining an intense conceptual exchange with participating artists evolved into a close relationship. The programmes complemented each other and in the mid-90’s, Monika Sprüth and Philomene Magers decided to merge their galleries. Cologne and Munich were to be the locations. A Munich branch subsequently opened in 1998 and in order to promote new talent, Sprüth Magers Projekte was created in addition to the main Munich space.
As the global art market grew, a third gallery came into being in 2003 located in the heart of Mayfair, London.
The move to Berlin is a natural progression with the city’s development into one of the most important centres internationally for contemporary art.
The Gartenbau at Oranienburger Strasse 18, previously an old Resource-Clubs ballroom and later a lecture hall affiliated to Humboldt University now redesigned by Barkow Leibinger Architects will host the gallery’s projects.
The opening of Monika Sprüth Philomene Magers on October 18th, 2008 will coincide with the inauguration of SCHELLMANN SPRÜTH MAGERS ART PRODUCTION, at the entrance to the building, with a new Jenny Holzer edition and also IMAGE MOVEMENT, a store for art films designed by Rosemarie Trockel and Thea Djordjadze.
