History of the Käthe Kollwitz Prize
Käthe Kollwitz Prize 1966 to Fritz Dähn
Käthe Kollwitz Prize 1984 to Manfred Böttcher: Manfred Böttcher and Werner Stötzer
Käthe Kollwitz Prize 2012 to Douglas Gordon: Audience during the award ceremony
Käthe Kollwitz Prize 2019 to Hito Steyerl: Reception during the welcome by Vice President Kathrin Röggla
Käthe Kollwitz Prize 2020: Timm Ulrichs with audience
The Käthe Kollwitz Prize for visual artists was founded by the Akademie der Künste (GDR) under Otto Nagel, then-president and friend of Kollwitz, as a prize bestowed by artists for artists. The aim was, and still is, to honour either an individual work or an oeuvre. Since the first prize was presented, the award has been given both to artists who have made a name for themselves among the art-interested public nationally and internationally, and to those who work in seclusion away from the art scene or the art market.
Käthe Kollwitz medal, designed 1961 by Wilfried Fitzenreiter
The Käthe Kollwitz Prize is awarded annually and is always decided by a newly-appointed jury of members of the Fine Arts Section. The prize is endowed with €12,000. To mark the award ceremony, the Akademie der Künste organizes an exhibition and publishes a small catalogue. Since 1992 and the unification of the East and West academies, the Käthe Kollwitz Prize has been co-financed by the Kreissparkasse Köln, as sponsor of the Käthe Kollwitz Museum Cologne.