Art Prize junger westen 2025 – Painting

Application period
April 1 – May 11, 2025

Exhibition
September 21 – November 16, 2025
Opening on September 20, 2025 at 5 pm

The application period for the 40th Kunstpreis junger westen starts on April 1, 2025. The art prize junger westen 2025 will be awarded for painting and is endowed with € 20,000. Artists who are not older than 35 years of age (born in 1990 or younger) and either have German citizenship or reside in Germany are eligible to participate in the competition.

The jury will not only select a winner, but also the artists for the exhibition, which will be on display at the Kunsthalle Recklinghausen from September 21 to November 16, 2025.

As the first municipal art prize in the Federal Republic of Germany after the World War II, the art prize junger westen has been awarded by the city of Recklinghausen since 1948. The award commemorates the group of artists of the same name founded in Recklinghausen in 1947 around the painters Gustav Deppe, Thomas Grochowiak, Emil Schumacher, Heinrich Siepmann, Hans Werdehausen and the sculptor Ernst Hermanns.

Supported by the Kulturstiftung der Stadtsparkasse Recklinghausen, the Rotary Club Recklinghausen and the Ulrike und Bernd Tönjes Stiftung.

Registration is only possible online between April 1 and May 11, 2025 via the website

https://kunstpreis-junger-westen.de

The prize winners of the art prize »junger westen«

The art prize »junger westen« has been awarded every two years since 1948 as a sponsorship prize for fine art by the city of Recklinghausen. It commemorates the »junger westen« group of artists founded in Recklinghausen in 1948 with founding members Gustav Deppe, Thomas Grochowiak, Ernst Hermanns, Emil Schumacher, Heinrich Siepmann and Hans Werdehausen. The group of artists is considered one of the most important sources of German art in the post-war period.

2023 competition for sculpture and installation:
Mona Schulzek

2021 competition for graphics, drawing and photography:
Jeewi Lee

2019 competition for painting:
Uğur Ulusoy

2017 competition for sculpture and installation:
Max Leiß

2015 competition for graphics, drawings and photography:
Jan Paul Evers

2013 competition for painting:
Florian Meisenberg

2011 competition for sculpture and installation:
Michael Sailstorfer

2009 competition for drawing, graphics and photography:
Susanne Britz (susannebritz) und Christian Schellenberger

2007 competition for sculpture and installation:
Gereon Krebber

2005 competition for painting:
Kalin Lindena

2003 competition for drawing, graphics and photography:
Peter Piller

2001 competition for sculpture:
Ulrich Genth

1999 competition for painting:
Heike Gallmeier

1997 competition for hand drawings and prints:
Andreas Ludwig

1995 competition for sculpture:
Stefan Kern

1993 competition for painting:
Susanne Paesler

1991 competition for prints:
Matthias Mansen sowie Bogdan Hoffmann und Martin Noel

1989 competition for sculpture:
Hannes Forster

1987 competition for hand drawing:
Constantin Jaxy und Richard Teml

1985 competition for painting:
Petr Hrbek

1983 competition for prints:
Hartmut Neumann

1981 competition for sculpture:
Otto Boll

1979 competition for collage, montage, assemblage:
Rolf Glasmeier

1977 competition for painting:
Friedemann Hahn

1975 open to all techniques on the subject "Nude":
Erhard Göttlicher

1973 open to all techniques on the subject of "Posie mit Material":
Ansgar Nierhoff

1972, open to all techniques on the subject of "Political and socio-critical caricatures":
Michel Sauer

1969 competition for hand drawings and prints:
Christian Rickert

1967 competition for painting:
Gerhard Richter

1965 competition for hand drawings and prints:
Handzeichnung: Roland Dörfler
Druckgrafik: Axel Knopp

1963 competition for sculpture:
Erich Hauser

1961 competition for painting:
Horst Antes

1959 competition for hand drawings and prints:
Handzeichnung: Emil Cimiotti
Druckgrafik: Rolf Sackenheim

1957 competition for sculpture:
Emil Cimiotti

1956 (first public competition) for painting:
Emil Kiess

1954
Heinrich Siepmann

1951
HAP Grieshaber, Ernst Hermanns

1950
Hubert Berke, Hans Werdehausen

1948
Karl Otto Götz, Kurt Lehmann, Emil Schumacher, Heinrich Siepmann

Mona Schulzek, art prize »junger westen« 2023

Jeewi Lee, art prize »junger westen« 2021

Ugur Ulusoy, art prize »junger westen« 2019

Max Leiß, art prize »junger westen« 2017

Jan Paul Evers, art prize »junger westen« 2015

Florian Meisenberg, art prize »junger westen« 2013

Michael Sailstorfer, art prize »junger westen« 2011

Informationen

Opening Hours

Termin buchen

Tickets

* Pupils, Apprentices, Students, Groups from 10 persons, Owners of the Recklinghausen Pass i.e. any other equivalent identification card from other municipalites, Owners of the Ehrenamtskarte NRW or the Jubiläums-Ehrenamtskarte NRW

The Kunsthalle is barrier-free accesible.

Guided Tours

The public guided tours are free of charge, only the entrance fee needs to be paid.

Per group (20 persons max.) a booked guided tour is 55,- Euro. Registration via tel. (02361) 50 19 35.

Address

Approach

The Kunsthalle is located across the central station, close to the bus station and is accessible via all public transportations. An underground park station is located underneath the bus station.