Press conference and opening of the special exhibition 'Beethoven by Warhol'

Special exhibition to mark the 200th anniversary of Ludwig van Beethoven’s death and the 40th anniversary of Andy Warhol’s death

A few weeks before Warhol’s sudden death on 22 February 1987, he produced his four-part silkscreen portfolio BEETHOVEN (1987). Not only is it one of his final works in printmaking, but it also marks the conclusion of his significant body of commissioned portraits. It is also regarded as an icon of 20th-century interpretations of Beethoven. To mark the two commemorative anniversaries – the 40th anniversary of Warhol’s death and the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death – in spring 2027, the Beethoven-Haus Bonn is dedicating a solo exhibition to this work for the first time, thanks to funding from the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media and the Gielen-Leyendecker Foundation. With the special exhibition Beethoven by Warhol, we trace the creation of Andy Warhol’s Beethoven portfolio, which spanned several years, and situate it within the context of his entire body of work. Featuring over a hundred objects by and featuring Andy Warhol – including some previously unknown works on paper or canvas, trial proofs, album covers and numerous ephemera (photographs, invitation cards, promotional posters, etc.) – the special exhibition also sheds light on a significant cultural chapter in the history of the Bonn Republic.

Two exhibition guides are being published to accompany the exhibition: a printed exhibition catalogue from the Beethoven-Haus Bonn and an innovative media guide from Trouby, Munich, personalised using artificial intelligence.

We cordially invite you to the
press conference on 7 September 2026 at 3.30 pm
at the Beethoven-Haus Bonn Museum, Bonngasse 22, 53111 Bonn

At the press conference, we will be presenting the special exhibition Beethoven by Warhol to members of the media two days before the official opening. Photographers and film crews are very welcome.

Speakers will include the Director of the Beethoven-Haus, as well as the authors and creators of the exhibition catalogue and the media guide.

• Malte Boecker, Director of the Beethoven-Haus Bonn and Project Manager
• Dr Silke Bettermann, art historian and research assistant at the Beethoven-Haus Bonn and the Mutter-Beethoven-Haus Museum in Koblenz
• Guy Minnebach, collector and expert on Warhol record covers
• Thomas Kliemann, journalist
• Arthur Abs, co-founder and managing director of Trouby, Munich

Neil Printz, editor of the CATALOGUES RAISONNÉS OF PAINTINGS, SCULPTURES, AND DRAWINGS published by the Warhol Foundation, New York, as well as two contemporary witnesses from Galerie Wünsche, Stefan Unkelbach and Peter Wierny, are also available for interviews.

Following the press conference, the exhibition opening will begin at 6 pm with lenders, sponsors and guests of honour, in the presence of Wolfram Weimer, Minister of State for Culture and Media, who is acting as patron of this exhibition. Representatives of the media are also warmly invited to the opening.

Please register by 21 August 2026 by emailing presse@europressedienst.com.

Press contact on behalf of the Beethoven-Haus press office:

Michael Forst
Europressedienst
Tel: +49 172 8584604
m.forst@europressedienst.com

Beethoven-Haus Bonn:
The Beethoven-Haus Bonn association, founded in 1889, is regarded as the world’s leading Beethoven centre. It has set itself the task of keeping Beethoven’s life, works and legacy alive. This cultural institution comprises the world’s most significant Beethoven collection, the museum in Beethoven’s birthplace – which attracts around 100,000 visitors a year – a musicological research department complete with a library and publishing house, and the Hermann J. Abs Chamber Music Hall. Backed by hundreds of friends, patrons and members from over 20 countries, and supported by the Federal Government, the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, the Rhineland Regional Council and the Federal City of Bonn, the Beethoven-Haus fulfils a cultural mission of national and international significance. The violinist Daniel Hope has been its President since March 2020.