Philipp Gufler: Imitations of Paul

For the exhibition “Imitations of Paul,” Philipp Gufler engages in a dialogue with the painter Paul Hoecker, whose life and work were long marginalized and whose extensive body of work has still not been fully cataloged.

– Philipp Gufler, Imitationen von Paul, 2026. Screen print on fabric

Very few biographies leave behind a complete archive. Most exist primarily as traces—in images, in relationships, in what is repeated, quoted, or concealed. Philipp Gufler’s work addresses precisely these gaps and integrates fragments of history and stories into his artistic practice. For the exhibition “Imitations of Paul,” he enters into a dialogue with the painter Paul Hoecker (1854–1910), whose life and work were long marginalized and whose extensive oeuvre remains incompletely cataloged to this day. Hoecker’s career came to an abrupt end in 1898 after his homosexuality threatened to become public knowledge.

In “Imitations of Paul,” Gufler takes Hoecker’s multifaceted biography as the starting point for an act of artistic identification. The fabric and ceramic works on display explore how new forms, images, and narratives can be developed from fragmentary, archival traces. Here, however, imitation does not appear as mere mimicry, but—drawing on the art form of drag—as a practice of appropriation, exaggeration, and transformation: as a productive process that creates closeness, acknowledges difference, and, through repetition, brings forth something original.

The exhibition is part of Gallery Weekend Berlin.

Runtime: Fri, 01/05/2026 to Sat, 04/07/2026

Takes place here:

• Galerie BQ