Michael Müller

Michael Müller, born 1970 in Ingelheim am Rhein, is a German conceptual artist whose manifold, proliferating oeuvre cannot be ascribed to any one-way interpretation. He continuously broadens the methods of his artistic expression, combining works on paper with painting, text-based work, sculpture, found objects, music, and performance. In recent times, Müller has concentrated more and more on large paintings on canvas and glass. Müller collaborates with other artists, writers or craftsmen on a regular basis—he even created a cosmetic line and fashion collection—incorporating their work into his often exuberant installations and exhibitions. He received great critical and curatorial attention for his cycle of Eighteen Exhibitions, which began in 2013 with Galerie Thomas Schulte and ended in 2017 after a total of 33 individual exhibition projects and four performances that took place in the gallery, at KW Institute for Contemporary Art in Berlin, and at Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden.

Michael Müller studied sculpting and fine arts at the Kunstakademie in Düsseldorf with Magdalena Jetelová. From 2015 to 2018, he was visiting professor at the Berlin University of the Arts. In 2017, he was nominated for the Kunstpreis der Böttcherstraße, Bremen. In 2013, he was one of the nominees for the Berlin Art Prize and winner of the Sanofi Art Project. Important solo exhibitions include Städel Museum, Frankfurt a.M. (2022), Hasenheide 13, Wemhöner Collection, Berlin (2021), Jhaveri Contemporary, Mumbai (2016; 2017), Staatliche Kunsthalle Baden-Baden (2016/17), and KW Institute for Contemporary Art (2015/16). He has participated in numerous group exhibitions, including the Drawing Biennale at the Drawing Room, London, and Künstlerhaus Bregenz (2017), Kunstsaele Berlin (2016/17), Kunsthaus Hamburg (2016), Brandenburgischer Kunstverein Potsdam (2015), Konrad Adenauer Stiftung, Berlin (2015), Des Moines Art Centre (2014), Winzavod Center for Contemporary Art, Moscow (2014), Städtische Galerie Haus Seel, Siegen (2014), KW Institute for Contemporary Art (2013), Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland and Kunstmuseum Bonn (2012), Kunsthaus Dresden (2012), Landart Biennale, Ulaanbaatar (2010), Kunstmuseum Kloster Unser Lieben Frauen, Magdeburg (2010), Kunsthalle zu Kiel (2010), Lalit Kala Academi, Delhi (2009), Temporäre Kunsthalle, Berlin (2009), Centro Galego de Arte Contemporánea, Santiago de Compostela (2009), Syker Vorwerk – Zentrum für zeitgenössische Kunst, Syke (2008), Museum für Kommunikation, Berlin (2008), Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (2007), and Göttinger Kunstverein (2007). Michael Müller lives and works in Berlin.