From 20 March to 22 June 2025, Museum Folkwang devoted itself to an extraordinary relationship that left a lasting mark on both art and cultural history. The exhibition Woman in Blue brought together, for the first time in over thirty years, exclusively works that Oskar Kokoschka created in response to Alma Mahler. Around thirty pieces – paintings, drawings, fans and the famous doll – revealed how closely passion, obsession and artistic innovation were interwoven.
This group of works occupies a key position in the artist’s oeuvre. Within it, emotional intensity and a new, powerful mode of expression crystallised, marking Kokoschka’s path towards becoming one of the foremost figures of Expressionism. Particularly noteworthy is the Portrait of Alma Mahler from 1912, which was once part of the Folkwang collection before accompanying Alma into exile. For this exhibition it returned on loan from Tokyo – alongside numerous international loans and a work generously provided by Leopold Fine Arts.
With Woman in Blue, Museum Folkwang opened a new chapter in the exploration of this legendary love story. The exhibition formed part of the collaborative project Double Portraits – Alma Mahler-Werfel in the Mirror of Viennese Modernism, in which several cultural institutions in Essen placed Alma Mahler-Werfel at the centre as one of the most fascinating figures of Viennese Modernism.