Absalon Retrospective at Kunst-Werke Berlin

Kunst-Werke Berlin opened a major retrospective of Absalon (1964–1993) on November 28, 2010, curated by Susanne Pfeffer. The exhibition, running until February 20, 2011, occupies all five floors of the venue. It features the prototypes of six Cellules (1992) designed for Paris, Zurich, New York, Tel Aviv, Frankfurt, and Tokyo—white wooden constructions with slightly undersized doors (under 1.60 m) and no functional plumbing or electricity. The show also includes Disposition (1990). Critic Thibaut de Ruyter draws parallels between Absalon's forms and the architecture of John Hejduk, noting the artist's focus on isolation and mental space rather than minimal housing. The retrospective is the first major one since 1994.