Under the stars: Commemorating 50th anniversary of Hannah Arendt's passing

“Under the Stars” opened at the Goethe-Institut Beijing on Oct. 11, 2025. The intimate memorial exhibition brings together seven contemporary artists to reinterpret Hannah Arendt’s civic ideas—public space, action and the “banality of evil”—within the context of today’s art scene in China. The exhibition runs through Jan. 11, 2026.

Deliberately minimalist and non-documentary, the show departs from traditional memorial formats, instead presenting Arendt’s ideas as active challenges. The works—ranging from room-sized models and printed sketches to video installations—explore the public sphere as a contested space of speech, memory, witnessing, and disruption. Thoughtfulyet restrained, the exhibition invites viewers to experience thinkingitself as something lived, sensory, and performative.

This photo, taken on Oct. 16, 2025, shows the Goethe-Institut gallery entrance and the title panel for “Under the Stars,” announcing the exhibition and placing Arendt’s ideas at the center of its program. [Photo by Liu Ziying/China.org.cn]