Since 1839 Kölnischer Kunstverein has been showing contemporary art. Many of the artists who exhibited here at an early stage in their career – Hans Arp (1919) and Paul Klee (1932) to name just two – have gone on to become one of the greats in the history of art. Exhibitions, such as “Happening and Fluxus” (1970), curated by Harald Szeemann, made exhibition history. In recent times Kölnischer Kunstverein has equally been showing an exciting mix of outstanding artistic positions by promising young talents. This way, Kölnischer Kunstverein has been making a valuable contribution to positions of new art for nearly 175 years.