Martin Wehmer
"Painting is the core of my research and artistic practice. As a European and as a German artist, I am inevitably shaped by the legacy of modernism, by conceptual approaches to representation, and by the long history of abstraction in European painting. Yet for me, painting has never been merely a formal exercise. It is a way of perceiving, questioning, and rethinking reality itself." - Martin Wehmer
Wehmer has taught at leading art institutions in China and has exhibited extensively internationally. His work is represented in notable public and corporate collections, including UBS, Kunstkredit Basel, and the Kultusministerium Kanton Basel.
Biography
Martin Wehmer’s paintings explore the ways perception, cultural memory, and personal experience shape our understanding of reality. Rooted in a European and German artistic tradition informed by modernism, conceptual approaches to representation, and abstraction, Wehmer approaches painting as a means of questioning and reinterpreting the world around him.
Born in Blankenstein, Hattingen, Germany, in 1966, Wehmer was awarded the Volksbanken Art Prize in 1996. International residencies in Edinburgh and Beijing expanded his perspective and ultimately led him to settle in Beijing in 2008, where he has lived and worked ever since. In 2009, he was among the organizers of the 798 Beijing Biennale, reflecting his active engagement with China's contemporary art community.
Living between cultures has become central to Wehmer’s practice. His work encompasses both abstract and figurative painting, often drawing upon forms, objects, and imagery that carry psychological, symbolic, and cultural associations. Rather than illustrating narratives, his paintings investigate how meaning shifts across geographic, historical, and cultural boundaries.
Across diverse bodies of work, Wehmer creates a space where cultural distance, historical memory, and personal experience intersect, offering new ways of seeing and understanding the world.
Alongside his studio practice, Wehmer has taught at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts, and the Chinese-German Academy of Art, fostering artistic exchange between China and Germany. His work has been exhibited internationally and is represented in notable public and corporate collections, including UBS in Hong Kong, Cologne, and Zürich, as well as Kunstkredit Basel and the Kultusministerium Kanton Basel.
Born
1966 born in Hattingen, Germany
Grants and Awards
1996 Deutscher Kunstpreis der Volks- und Raiffeisenbanken
2003 Stipendium iaab, International Exchange Basel in Edinburgh
2008 Stipendium iaab, International Exchange Basel in Beijing, China
Selected Solo Exhibition
2026 Lost Container, Anja Knoess Gallery Cologne
2025 In Balance. Angela Li Contemporary Hong Kong
2024 Garden of Hesperides | Leo Gallery Shanghai , China
I will use your branches to make my laurel | Lan Gallery Shenzhen
I will use your branches to make my laurel | Anja Knoess Gallery Cologne
2023 RE COLORED | HOW Museum Shanghai, China
2022 QITA TAMEN | Galerie Anja Knoess, Cologne
2019 Xiao QI | small flags | Galerie Baumgarten, Freiburg;
2018 THE BACK OF STARRY SKY, Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong
Qi | pekin fine arts, Beijing, China
2015 Leo Gallery, Shanghai, China
"Martin Wehmer - In the Box There's a Goat Eating Coloured Pants “,
Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong, China
2014 "Martin Wehmer“, Contemporary by Angela Li Contemporary, Hong Kong,
2012 Idols | Museum art academy Tianjin, China
2010 SunWu Kong | Michael Schultz Gallery, Seoul, Korea
2008 0figur | Morat-Institut für Kunst und Kunstwissenschaft, Freiburg
2007 0figur | Dortmunder Kunstverein, Dortmund
2006 Kunst am Rheinlanddamm | RWE Energy AG, Dortmund
2005 Gift | Gallery Daeppen, Basel
2003 Malerei | Städtische Galerie Waldkraiburg
Lillis | Gallery Daeppen, Basel
2002 Kunstverein Freiburg | Martin Wehmer
Kreidler Florett | Marburger Kunstverein, Marburg
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026 West Color , DA, Kunsthaus Kloster Gravenhorst
2023 VIS A VIS, Galerie Albert Baumgarten, Freiburg, Germany
2 X, Haishang Gallery, Nanjing; China (Ben Hübsch, Li Di , Tan Ping)
2022 Blue Prologue, Lan Gallery, Shenzen China
Guten Morgen Malerei., Galerie Albert Baumgarten, Freiburg, Germany
2021 Selction Choice | White Box, 798, Beijing; China
2019 2015 Deutsche Kunst in China | Deutsche Botschaft Peking, China
2017 27, Pekin fine arts Beijing, China
HEITER BIS WOLKIG, Galerie Anja Knoess, Köln
Farbdinge, Farbräume | Dr. Carl Dörken Stiftung | Herdecke, Germany
2012 Biennale Beijing | National Art Museum of China, Beijing, China
2009 Monumental in time | Michael Schultz Gallery, Beijing, China
ANNEXE/INFIX | Biennale 798 Beijing, SZ Art Center, Beijing, China
2008 International Inkism | sunhine international museum, Beijing, China
Critical Mass | Huang Yan Contemporary Art Center, Beijing, China
2007 1996 Mythos Feldberg | Schwarzwälder Skimuseum, Hinterzarten
Deutscher Kunstpreis der Volks- und Raiffeisenbanken | Kunstmuseum Bonn
Press
PRESS
Selected Artworks
Born
1966 born in Hattingen, Germany
Grants and Awards
1996 Deutscher Kunstpreis der Volks- und Raiffeisenbanken
2003 Stipendium iaab, International Exchange Basel in Edinburgh
2008 Stipendium iaab, International Exchange Basel in Beijing, China
Selected Solo Exhibition
2026 Lost Container, Anja Knoess Gallery Cologne
2025 In Balance. Angela Li Contemporary Hong Kong
2024 Garden of Hesperides | Leo Gallery Shanghai , China
I will use your branches to make my laurel | Lan Gallery Shenzhen
I will use your branches to make my laurel | Anja Knoess Gallery Cologne
2023 RE COLORED | HOW Museum Shanghai, China
2022 QITA TAMEN | Galerie Anja Knoess, Cologne
2019 Xiao QI | small flags | Galerie Baumgarten, Freiburg;
2018 THE BACK OF STARRY SKY, Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong
Qi | pekin fine arts, Beijing, China
2015 Leo Gallery, Shanghai, China
"Martin Wehmer - In the Box There's a Goat Eating Coloured Pants “,
Contemporary by Angela Li, Hong Kong, China
2014 "Martin Wehmer“, Contemporary by Angela Li Contemporary, Hong Kong,
2012 Idols | Museum art academy Tianjin, China
2010 SunWu Kong | Michael Schultz Gallery, Seoul, Korea
2008 0figur | Morat-Institut für Kunst und Kunstwissenschaft, Freiburg
2007 0figur | Dortmunder Kunstverein, Dortmund
2006 Kunst am Rheinlanddamm | RWE Energy AG, Dortmund
2005 Gift | Gallery Daeppen, Basel
2003 Malerei | Städtische Galerie Waldkraiburg
Lillis | Gallery Daeppen, Basel
2002 Kunstverein Freiburg | Martin Wehmer
Kreidler Florett | Marburger Kunstverein, Marburg
Selected Group Exhibitions
2026 West Color , DA, Kunsthaus Kloster Gravenhorst
2023 VIS A VIS, Galerie Albert Baumgarten, Freiburg, Germany
2 X, Haishang Gallery, Nanjing; China (Ben Hübsch, Li Di , Tan Ping)
2022 Blue Prologue, Lan Gallery, Shenzen China
Guten Morgen Malerei., Galerie Albert Baumgarten, Freiburg, Germany
2021 Selction Choice | White Box, 798, Beijing; China
2019 2015 Deutsche Kunst in China | Deutsche Botschaft Peking, China
2017 27, Pekin fine arts Beijing, China
HEITER BIS WOLKIG, Galerie Anja Knoess, Köln
Farbdinge, Farbräume | Dr. Carl Dörken Stiftung | Herdecke, Germany
2012 Biennale Beijing | National Art Museum of China, Beijing, China
2009 Monumental in time | Michael Schultz Gallery, Beijing, China
ANNEXE/INFIX | Biennale 798 Beijing, SZ Art Center, Beijing, China
2008 International Inkism | sunhine international museum, Beijing, China
Critical Mass | Huang Yan Contemporary Art Center, Beijing, China
2007 1996 Mythos Feldberg | Schwarzwälder Skimuseum, Hinterzarten
Deutscher Kunstpreis der Volks- und Raiffeisenbanken | Kunstmuseum Bonn
Martin Wehmer’s paintings explore the ways perception, cultural memory, and personal experience shape our understanding of reality. Rooted in a European and German artistic tradition informed by modernism, conceptual approaches to representation, and abstraction, Wehmer approaches painting as a means of questioning and reinterpreting the world around him.
Born in Blankenstein, Hattingen, Germany, in 1966, Wehmer was awarded the Volksbanken Art Prize in 1996. International residencies in Edinburgh and Beijing expanded his perspective and ultimately led him to settle in Beijing in 2008, where he has lived and worked ever since. In 2009, he was among the organizers of the 798 Beijing Biennale, reflecting his active engagement with China's contemporary art community.
Living between cultures has become central to Wehmer’s practice. His work encompasses both abstract and figurative painting, often drawing upon forms, objects, and imagery that carry psychological, symbolic, and cultural associations. Rather than illustrating narratives, his paintings investigate how meaning shifts across geographic, historical, and cultural boundaries.
Across diverse bodies of work, Wehmer creates a space where cultural distance, historical memory, and personal experience intersect, offering new ways of seeing and understanding the world.
Alongside his studio practice, Wehmer has taught at the Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, the Tianjin Academy of Fine Arts, and the Chinese-German Academy of Art, fostering artistic exchange between China and Germany. His work has been exhibited internationally and is represented in notable public and corporate collections, including UBS in Hong Kong, Cologne, and Zürich, as well as Kunstkredit Basel and the Kultusministerium Kanton Basel.
Biography
Press
"Painting is the core of my research and artistic practice. As a European and as a German artist, I am inevitably shaped by the legacy of modernism, by conceptual approaches to representation, and by the long history of abstraction in European painting. Yet for me, painting has never been merely a formal exercise. It is a way of perceiving, questioning, and rethinking reality itself." - Martin Wehmer
Wehmer has taught at leading art institutions in China and has exhibited extensively internationally. His work is represented in notable public and corporate collections, including UBS, Kunstkredit Basel, and the Kultusministerium Kanton Basel.
Martin Wehmer
"Painting is the core of my research and artistic practice. As a European and as a German artist, I am inevitably shaped by the legacy of modernism, by conceptual approaches to representation, and by the long history of abstraction in European painting. Yet for me, painting has never been merely a formal exercise. It is a way of perceiving, questioning, and rethinking reality itself." - Martin Wehmer
Wehmer has taught at leading art institutions in China and has exhibited extensively internationally. His work is represented in notable public and corporate collections, including UBS, Kunstkredit Basel, and the Kultusministerium Kanton Basel.