Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
At its St. Agnes space in Berlin, KÖNIG GALERIE presents ECHOTROPIA, an exhibition of new paintings by German artist Christian Achenbach. The exhibition transforms the gallery’s Nave into an immersive landscape filled with vivid color and shifting viewpoints. The artist draws on diverse art historical traditions to create imagined environments that move between abstraction and recognizable natural forms.
At the center of the exhibition, GENESIS commands attention with its expansive scale. Created specifically for the Nave, the painting measures approximately 8 meters (26.2 feet) wide and 3.6 meters (11.8 feet) tall. Its composition unfolds through wavy bands of color that ripple across the canvas. Rather than depicting a particular place, Achenbach uses color to establish its own rhythm and atmosphere.
An abstract grid occupies the foreground, recalling the enlargement techniques Renaissance painters used to transfer preliminary drawings onto larger surfaces. Its geometric structure contrasts with the expansive scenery behind it. Achenbach further disrupts conventional perspective by presenting multiple viewpoints within a single composition. The result recalls the concept of an “angle of totality” described by Chinese landscape painter Guo Xi, in which a landscape is understood through several vantage points rather than one fixed perspective.
Alongside the expansive landscapes, Achenbach introduces still lifes featuring floral arrangements positioned near windows and on terraces. Framed by elaborate curtains, the compositions suggest a quiet exchange between domestic interiors and the natural world beyond them. The flowers appear almost continuous with the surrounding landscape, softening the distinction between the two spaces.
Throughout the exhibition, Achenbach draws on diverse pictorial traditions, particularly Cubism and Fauvism. The former informs his fragmented spaces and shifting viewpoints, while the latter finds expression in his vivid use of color. Neither influence dominates. Instead, they intersect within compositions that move between recognizable landscapes and abstraction.
The exhibition’s title suggests a world shaped by echoes and transformation. Achenbach’s paintings follow a similar logic: familiar visual references reappear in unfamiliar arrangements, opening onto imagined territories. Rather than offering a fixed interpretation of the landscape, ECHOTROPIA invites viewers to explore its shifting forms and discover their own paths through the imagery.
ECHOTROPIA is currently on view at KÖNIG GALERIE’s St. Agnes location in Berlin through November 8, 2026. To keep up to date with the artist, you can follow Christian Achenbach on Instagram.
German artist Christian Achenbach transforms KÖNIG GALERIE’s St. Agnes Nave with ECHOTROPIA, an exhibition of vibrant, imagined landscapes.
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Sfumato,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 63 x 53 cm, 24 3/4 x 20 7/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Modestus,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 234 x 154 cm, 92 1/8 x 60 5/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
At the center of the exhibition, GENESIS is an 8-meter-wide painting created specifically for the gallery’s monumental interior.
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Genesis,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas, 360 x 800 cm, 141 3/4 x 315 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Echotropia,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 254 x 304 cm, 100 x 119 3/4 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Tombo,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 104 x 94 cm, 41 x 37 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach, “Echotropia,” KÖNIG GALERIE, Berlin, 2026 © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Roman März, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Through shifting perspectives and richly colored compositions, Achenbach explores the space between abstraction, art history, and the natural world.
Christian Achenbach; “Lazio,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 63 x 53 cm, 24 3/4 x 20 7/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Namar,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 234 x 154 cm, 92 1/8 x 60 5/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Silhouette,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 234 x 154 cm, 92 1/8 x 60 5/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Esprimo,” 2026; oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 104 x 94 cm, 41 x 37 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Diotima;” 2026, oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 234 x 154 cm, 92 1/8 x 60 5/8 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
Christian Achenbach; “Chatto;” 2026, oil, acrylic, and pastel on canvas; wooden frame, 234 x 284 cm, 92 1/8 x 111 3/4 in © Christian Achenbach. (Photo: Mika Gentili, courtesy of KÖNIG GALERIE)
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