Thursday 23.4.2026 7.00 p.m. - 8.00 p.m.
Two systems, five cities, five images. Different ideologies and time periods. CLOSE UP MARX is a cinematic exploration of the ideas of the founding father of political economy, now frozen in monument form. With contemporary relevance, the film travels between Trier and Chemnitz in the footsteps of the Marx monuments, relates found footage to on-site conversations, and analyzes the myth and projection surface that surrounded the figure of Marx. The film explores the origins of the monuments and the social context at the moment these stories unfolded. YouTube clips, DEFA films, and news snippets show the Marx monuments at the moment of their erection, dismantling, and reconstruction. Conversations with contemporary witnesses transport the audience into a stage space where the various monuments have gathered as flat cardboard walls to form a group portrait.
The monument, reserved in the 19th century for kings and the aristocracy, has come to encompass the pioneer of value criticism in the 20th and 21st centuries. Karl Marx can only be viewed through contradictions. CLOSE UP MARX explores these contradictions in close-ups, with open curiosity and without judgment.
The movie and the event will be in German.
/ ZAK Center for Contemporary Art
/ free admission
Photo: A bust of Marx, which will be on display starting May 9, 2026, in “Unveiled: Berlin and Its Monuments.”
