Go Clara Go: Art and Independent Expression in the GDR

Art has played a significant role throughout history—not only as a form of creative expression, but also as a means of documenting, protesting, and reflecting on societal as well as political conditions. From painting and performance to film, artistic work has long served to engage public audiences and encourage dialogue.

During World War II, many Jewish individuals used art in ghettos and camps not only to protest but also to preserve their cultural identity and record their experiences. While the most famous examples of protest art were made in the past, they remain important for understanding the human impact of that time and continue to inform historical education today.

This perspective forms the backdrop for Go Clara Go, a documentary by award-winning director Sylvie Kürsten.

The film traces the development of an independent art scene in East Germany during the 1970s and 1980s, focusing on the Clara Mosch artist collective and the Galerie Oben in Chemnitz (formerly Karl-Marx-Stadt). These artists sought alternative paths outside the official cultural institutions of the German Democratic Republic. Drawing on archival footage, interviews, and personal accounts, the documentary reconstructs an artistic environment shaped by state oversight and explores how creative communities responded to the cultural and political landscape of the time.

Director Sylvie Kürsten documents how art became a space for non-conformist expression, in no way inferior to Western role models like Joseph Beuys, and transformed Chemnitz into a scene of creative resistance that continues to resonate today.

Join 1014 for a private screening of Go Clara Go, with by a talkback with director Sylvie Kürsten, and be among the first of U.S. audiences to view this important documentary.

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