Study Center for Artists’ Legacies Saxony-Anhalt
From summer 2024, the BBK Saxony-Anhalt carried out a project dealing with a potential center for artists’ estates Saxony-Anhalt. How great is the need for such a central facility in our state? How could such a center be structured? We would like to discuss these and other questions with the help of external partners and together with stakeholders from the arts and culture. The project was financed by the state of Saxony-Anhalt.
Study put on ice by the state of Saxony-Anhalt
After the state of Saxony-Anhalt had funded the three-year project in 2024, the 2025/26 double budget adopted by the state of Saxony-Anhalt in February 2025 brought the project to an abrupt end. This means that the urgently needed research into structures for securing and preserving artistic estates is on the brink of collapse. There is a great lack of understanding among those involved in the project. Stopping a multi-year project that has already received public funding is not very sustainable. This approach appears all the more contradictory in view of the initial interim results. The survey conducted in 2024 revealed major needs. The majority of respondents are in favor of a nationwide center for artists’ estates and urgently need expert advice on all aspects of artists’ estates. The state government’s actions are in stark contradiction to its own statements:
“To safeguard artistic legacies, the state supports the Professional Association of Visual Artists (BBK) in setting up a legacy archive.” (Coalition agreement for the state of Saxony-Anhalt, 2021, line 5375)
“The adopted budget will enable both the proven funding structures and new cultural impulses. Despite the necessary consolidation, cultural funding in Saxony-Anhalt remains a reliable partner for cultural professionals, facilities and institutions throughout the state. ” (Press release State Chancellery and Ministry of Culture 064/2025 from 20.02.2025)
The Professional Association of Visual Artists Saxony-Anhalt emphasizes this:
“Many visual artists in Saxony-Anhalt are confronted with the question of what will happen to their life’s work. Without a professional solution, significant parts of our cultural heritage are at risk of being lost “, explains Ruth Heftrig, Managing Director of the association.
“We don’t understand why the state of Saxony-Anhalt doesn’t recognize the importance of this project,” says Line Jastram, member of the BBK board. “The question of how to deal with artistic estates concerns us all. We will not give up fighting for a long-term solution .”
Survey of artists and estate holders reveals enormous needs
The FOG Institute from Chemnitz summarized the results of the survey in December 2024 and presented them for discussion at a BBK Saxony-Anhalt event in February 2025. The 82-page results report is available to the public.
Here are the most important results at a glance:
- Although many artists are thinking about their future estate, only 8 percent have already made arrangements.
- 84 percent of the artists surveyed would like their legacy or estate to become the property of a public charity.
- 88 percent of artists consider a nationwide center for artists’ estates to be very relevant or relevant, while the figure for estate holders (museums, archives and private individuals) is as high as 93 percent.
- 71 percent of artists have a need for advice in the area of securing artists’ estates.
In the next step, the planned study should provide the basis for a sustainable concept for the preservation of artistic estates – a necessity that was expressly emphasized by numerous artists and estate holders in the BBK survey. The results of the survey show that there is a lack of storage capacity, documentation options and professional support.
We would like to thank everyone who took part in the survey and its dissemination!
From mid-September to mid-November 2024, we initially conducted a survey in order to have a solid data basis for further concepts. The response was great. The Museum and Archive Association, the Saxony-Anhalt Art Foundation and other partners forwarded our appeal, articles about the project appeared in the press and our various online channels also repeatedly drew attention to the survey. Around 100 artists and 25 estate holders completed our questionnaire. This is a solid result and roughly corresponds to the participation rate in a survey conducted in Saxony in fall 2020.
We are now working on the evaluation and expect to be able to present the results in March 2025.
Get information about the study
If you would like to receive further information about the study Künstlernachlasszentrum Sachsen-Anhalt, please fill in our contact form. Thank you for participating in our study!
Course plant database spring 2025
In spring 2025, the BBK Saxony-Anhalt is offering a new fee-based course for artists, heirs and estate administrators under the direction of art historian Katharina Lorenz M.A., which consists of three dates. The following documents must be submitted for the application: Letter of motivation, short biography, list of exhibitions, list of publications, digital image of […]
For documentation purposes, you can still find our call for the survey here:
Needs analysis with survey in fall 2024
The study is based on a needs analysis that will be carried out by mid-November 2024. Visual artists and estate holders (heirs, but also museums and archives holding estates) are invited to participate. Take half an hour to fill out our anonymous survey!
If you prefer to complete the survey on paper, please download the pdf file(PDF survey for artists // PDF survey for estate holders), print it out and send it back to us, or contact us and we will be happy to send it to you by post.
You do not have to answer all the questions, but can skip individual points. However, many answers naturally guarantee a better analysis. You can also help us a lot by completing the questionnaire online. Because we save time if we don’t have to enter your answers into the computer by hand.
Please note two further definitions: By “artist’s estate” we mean a largely complete collection of an artist’s life’s work that represents all important creative phases. Individual groups of works are not meant here. By “core collection” we mean a collection of approx. 5-10% of a life’s work of works from all creative phases and techniques that are representative of the development of the work.