THE GHOST IN THE CURVE

The artist Hilka Nordhausen (1949 – 1993, Hamburg) studied at the University of Fine Arts in Hamburg with Franz Erhard Walther and Gerhard Rühm from 1970 to 1975, and worked at the intersection of arts, writing, curating, and publishing. In 1976 she founded BUCH HANDLUNG WELT and was a central actor of the Hamburg cultural scene until her death in 1993.

The Hamburger Kunsthalle is currently collaborating with the Archiv Hilka Nordhausen and Bettina Sefkow  –  founder of the archive, in the perspective of a major donation from the artist’s family to Hamburger Kunsthalle and an exhibition at the Harzen Kabinett opening on October 1st, 2025. Nordhausen's processual artistic practice, particularly the subtle connections between different media, concepts, and layers of time, has become central to the understanding of her oeuvre. Thematic focal points include early conceptual drawings, their extension into space and interactions with the environment; paintings; collages; performative gestures; artistic collaborations; printed matter; and in-situ installations. Nordhausen's approach repeatedly withstands simple classification reflecting this historical scene of the 1970s until the early 1990s.

Nordhausen developed BUCH HANDLUNG WELT, as a bookshop as well as an exhibition site and meeting place where artists, performers, and writers from Hamburg and internationally could engage in public artistic exchange. 

Curators

• Dr. Corinne Diserens, head of collection contemporary Art
• Jana Pfort, curatorial trainee

In collaboration with Archiv Hilka Nordhausen, Hamburg