Galerie Henze & Ketterer
Program and mission statement
Galerie Henze & Ketterer , founded in 1946, will celebrate its 80th anniversary in 2026. Now in its third generation as a family-owned business, the gallery is dedicated to modern and contemporary art, with a special focus on German Expressionism.
Since the mid-1950s, the gallery has managed the estate of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, one of the most important representatives of German Expressionism and a co-founder of the artists’ association Brücke. The scholarly study of his oeuvre, the management of his estate, and collaboration with international museums and institutions form an essential part of the gallery’s work. An overview of current exhibitions featuring works on loan can be found under Exhibitions.
Other areas of focus include Classical Modern art, abstraction and Informel after 1945, as well as New Figuration and contemporary art featuring artists from Italy, Spain, and Germany.
Spread across three floors, the gallery presents exhibitions on Expressionism—particularly those featuring Ernst Ludwig Kirchner—as well as Classical Modern art and abstraction after 1945.
The “ KUNST-DEPOT,” whose premises were designed by the architects Gigon/Guyer, hosts exhibitions of contemporary art and large-format works.
Since the early 1970s, the gallery has been represented at international art fairs, including Art Basel, FIAC Paris, Masterpiece London, Art Cologne, Art Karlsruhe, and, to this day, TEFAF Maastricht.
Since 1993, the gallery has been based in Wichtrach near Bern. Previously, it was located in Stuttgart (from 1946), in Campione d’Italia on Lake Lugano (1962 and 1970), and, from 2001 to 2024, maintained a branch in Riehen near Basel.
In addition to Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, the gallery manages the archives and estates of Berthold Müller-Oerlinghausen, Theo Eble, and Fritz Winter. The Stuttgart Kunstkabinett Roman Norbert Ketterer Archive forms an important foundation for international provenance research on the art of the Modern art.
The gallery’s other areas of activity include the art trade, consignment sales, art books and publications, as well as consulting on issues of documentation, authenticity, conservation, insurance, and transport. The gallery collaborates with artists, collectors, colleagues, and curators.
In addition to its exhibitions and publications, the gallery maintains a presence through various online viewing rooms as well as on Artsy, Artnet, IFPDA, Instagram, YouTube, and LinkedIn.
OUR OFFERS & SERVICES
Art consulting from classical Modern art to contemporary art
The team at Galerie Henze & Ketterer advises collectors on building and managing collections ranging from modern art to contemporary art. The focus is on providing personalized guidance on art-historical, qualitative, and practical issues.
In addition to the artists represented in the Henze & Ketterer gallery and art advisory program, works by other artists can also be sourced through the gallery’s international network.
The gallery maintains an extensive in-house collection and also works with commissioned works from estates, colleagues, collectors, and living artists for special exhibition projects and art fair participations.
Art sale: services, guarantees and costs
Galerie Henze & Ketterer guarantees the authenticity, verified provenance, and stated condition of all works offered. Any known defects, gaps in provenance, or other relevant issues are transparently disclosed in the respective work descriptions. As a general rule, the gallery does not offer works with significant defects, dubious provenance, or unclear authenticity.
For serious prospective buyers, condition reports for significant works can be prepared by experienced museum conservators upon request.
Administration of the estate of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner
Since the mid-1950s, the gallery has managed the estate of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, one of the most important artists of the Classical Modern art and a co-founder of the artists’ association Brücke. In doing so, it helps make the works of Brücke, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and other representatives of Expressionism accessible in an international exhibition context.
For all works by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner offered by the gallery, the collector will receive, free of charge, an official certificate of authenticity from the Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Archive, located at the Galerie Henze & Ketterer in Wichtrach near Bern.
Estate administration & provenance research
In addition to Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, the gallery also manages the archives and estates of Berthold Müller-Oerlinghausen, Eduard Bargheer, Francis Bott and Fritz Winter.
With the information from the"Archive Stuttgarter Kunstkabinett Roman Norbert Ketterer", Galerie Henze & Ketterer makes an important contribution to international provenance research on art from Modern art.
Kunst-Depot by Gigon/Guyer
In 2001, the KUNST-DEPOT by the architects Gigon/Guyer, who built the Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Museum in Davos in 1992. The upper level of the KUNST-DEPOT is a showroom in the format of an art gallery.
Here, the Galerie Henze & Ketterer shows special exhibitions of large formats or selected works by its younger artists: Dario Basso, Jürgen Brodwolf, Alfonso Hüppi, Kubach-Wilmsen, Giovanni Manfredini, Daniel Spoerri.
HISTORY
Roman Norbert Ketterer
- Stuttgart Art Cabinet
In 1946, Roman Norbert Ketterer (1911-2002) discovered Expressionism, which had been ostracized during the Third Reich and was still unknown to him, as the true art of his generation and founded the Stuttgart Kunstkabinett in order to give this art the recognition it deserved.
With the help of special auctions, which from 1946 to 1962 increased in scope, quality and price level to world renown, he brought Expressionism back into the public eye, into private collections and back into the museums plundered by the Nazis.
In Stuttgart, the foundations were laid for collections such as those of Heinrich von Thyssen, Bernhard Sprengel and Lothar Günther Buchheim, from which important museums later emerged.
From 1954, Roman Norbert Ketterer was also the administrator of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner's estate. This enabled him and his wife Rosemarie Ketterer to donate the building and collection of the Kirchner Museum Davos in 1992. From 1962 to 1988, R. N. Ketterer worked as a leading specialist for Expressionism in Campione d'Italia on Lake Lugano.
Further information on Roman Norbert Ketterer
(Photo: Federal Government/Schaack)
Ingeborg Henze-Ketterer
Dr. Wolfgang Henze
In Campione d’Italia in 1970, his daughter Ingeborg Henze-Ketterer and his son-in-law Dr. Wolfgang Henze—son of the art critic Anton Henze (1913–1983), who worked in Münster and Rome—founded their own company. It specialized in prints from the Expressionist movement, 1950s abstraction, and works by contemporary artists.
They expanded this work in Wichtrach/Bern starting in 1993, managing additional estates and establishing archives of artists’ complete works, such as that of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. Since the death of Roman Norbert Ketterer in 2002, the Kirchner estate has been administered by Ingeborg Henze-Ketterer and Günther Ketterer (1949–2024).
In Wichtrach/Bern, rotating permanent exhibitions are held on Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, theBrücke, Expressionism and its aftermath, as well as other long-standing themes of the gallery’s program.
The Galerie Henze & Ketterer thus Galerie Henze & Ketterer a center for Expressionist research. Drawing on its archives—particularly those concerning the complete works of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and the Stuttgart Kunstkabinett Roman Norbert Ketterer—the gallery Modern art and organizes exhibitions, publications, and conferences worldwide in this field of Modern art , clarifies questions of authenticity, and conducts provenance research.
Further information on Dr. Wolfgang Henze
Dr. Alexandra Henze
As a third-generation member of the Henze-Ketterer family, Alexandra Henze is part of the gallery’s management team.
As an expert on Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, Henze—who holds a Ph.D. in art history—also participates in curating and overseeing international museum exhibitions, as well as contributing to catalogs and giving lectures on work .
For over 20 years, until 2024, Alexandra Henze directed the Galerie Henze & Ketterer Riehen/Basel, which was originally founded as Galerie Henze & Ketterer Triebold Galerie Henze & Ketterer .
Opening speech, Kichner Museum Davos, 2024
(Photo: Stephan Bösch)
Dr. Wolfgang Henze and Ingeborg Henze-Ketterer
Günther Ketterer
Carola Ertle Ketterer
GüntherKetterer (1949–2024), the son of Roman Norbert Ketterer, was a co-owner of Galerie Henze & Ketterer , among other roles, president of the Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Foundation in Davos.
Together with his wife, Carola Ertle Ketterer—who was also active in numerous cultural roles—he collected art, focusing on contemporary and video art.
Since 2004, Carola and Günther Ketterer-Ertle have dedicated a separate platform, videokunst.ch, to the latter. The Art Estate Foundation is another important initiative; it manages high-quality work of artists whose work is representative of their time and their local and international spheres of influence.
Since the 1990s, video art has been a major focus of the Carola and Günther Ketterer-Ertle Collection. Personal contact and direct exchange with the artists are central criteria in their collecting activities and form the basis for collaborations that are often long-standing.
Kirchner Museum Davos
Roman Norbert Ketterer had been the administrator of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s estate since 1954. As a result, in 1992, he and his wife, Rosemarie Ketterer, were able to endow the construction and collection of the Kirchner Museum Davos.
The Kirchner Museum Davos is a nonprofit private museum owned by the Ernst Ludwig Kirchner Foundation Davos. The foundation owns the museum building designed by Gigon/Guyer.
The Kirchner Museum Davos collects, preserves, researches, and presents the work Ernst Ludwig Kirchner. The collection of the Kirchner Museum Davos spans all of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s creative periods from 1904 to 1938. It also includes selected works by Brücke and other representatives of classical Modern art.
The Kirchner Museum Davos is a cultural beacon in Switzerland. It is a place for contemplation, renewal, and discussion. The Kirchner Museum Davos is a cosmopolitan, service-oriented, and family-friendly museum that caters to all age groups and segments of society.
