(L-R) Simon Santschi; Bettina van Haaren; Wolfgang Folmer; Markus Nöhl; Simone Leyk; Mehveş Ungan;
Credit: Ali Sahib, Chronicle.lu
Thursday 12 February 2026 marked the opening of a new exhibition, titled "Grundberührung", at Kunsthalle Trier in Germany.
With "Grundberührung", artists Bettina van Haaren and Wolfgang Folmer present a monumental, temporary wall drawing - a work that will exist only for the duration of the exhibition, on view until Sunday 15 March 2026. A discussion with the artist is planned for Wednesday 18 February 2026 at 18:00.
Measuring 5 x 17 metres, this ephemeral piece forms the centrepiece of the exhibition and will be painted over at its conclusion. According to the organisers, its deliberate impermanence is integral to its message: a conscious act of resistance against the commodification of art.
Since 2022, Bettina van Haaren and Wolfgang Folmer have been developing their distinct artistic languages within a shared, dialogical practice. As an artist duo, they explore the possibilities of a contemporary history painting that departs from its traditional role of monumental heroisation. Instead, their work makes visible the inscriptions of the present: fragile living conditions, bodily and social vulnerability, and a palpable shift toward authoritarian and fascistic visions of society.
In "Grundberührung", curated by Mehveş Ungan, the artists have created a site-specific wall drawing for Kunsthalle Trier, complemented by new drawings, paintings and video works. These pieces reveal different facets of their ongoing artistic and theoretical exchange, demonstrating how mutual reflection and resistance can shape a shared artistic practice.
The artists described their large-scale wall drawings as acts of monumental resistance against necrocapitalism - an exploitative global order that generates profit from vulnerability, destruction and death, in the form of ecocide, environmental collapse and genocide. Within this framework, their collaboration functions as a visual protest against a world economy sustained by violence and extraction.
At the beginning of the mural, viewers encounter an image that also serves as the exhibition's key visual: a decaying animal body above which a human figure rises, sprouting organic, phallic, mushroom-like forms. This archaic, almost cave-like structure evokes both myth and mutation, symbolising the destructive energy of hypermasculine, patriarchal systems and the techno-capitalist logic that threatens the planet.
Yet "Grundberührung" is not presented solely as dystopian. It also proposes a moment of pause and awareness. The title refers to a poetic concept at the core of the artists' thinking - "Grundberührung" ("grounding") as an invitation to slow down, stop and observe the effects of relentless acceleration. In a world driven by speed, optimisation and disruption, the exhibition seeks to create a space for reflection, presence and sensitivity.
About the artists
Bettina van Haaren is a painter, draughtswoman and printmaker whose work has been exhibited internationally for over 30 years. Her practice explores the interplay between the personal and the political, as well as between surface and emotion.
Wolfgang Folmer is an artist and educator whose work investigates the human condition within systems of image, language and power, combining figurative precision with conceptual inquiry.
Since forming their artistic duo in 2022, they have realised several major wall drawing projects, including presentations at the Saarlandmuseum Saarbrücken, the Institut für Aktuelle Kunst Saarlouis, the Dortmunder U, the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum Hamm, the Museum Heilbronn and the Museum Villa Rot.
