Art Madrid'26 – Café Lehmitz in pictures, a vivid experience

Anders Petersen. Café Lehmitz. 1967-1970

 

 


In this occasion, PhotoEspaña 2017 has given `carte blanche´ to the renowned photographer Alberto García-Alix to design an exhibition with his influential artists, in order to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Festival. These selected artists will show their works in Círculo de Bellas Artes, Museum of Romanticism and CentroCentro Cibeles. They are Antonie d'Agata, Pierre Molinier, Paulo Nozolino, Teresa Margolles, Karlheinz Weinberger y Anders Petersen.

 

 

 

Anders Petersen. Café Lehmitz. 1967-1970

 


Anders Petersen (Stockholm, 1944) approached to art through painting and writing, and after meeting Christer Ströholm he started with photography. He studied in several art schools in Stockholm and collaborated as a photographer in numerous swedish publications. He worked as a teacher at the Cinema and Photography University of Gothemburg, Sweden. Petersen has received numerous grants and rewards since the seventies, and regularly organises workshops and exhibitions throughout Europe, Asia and in the USA. In 1978, he published `Café Lehmitz´ in Germany. With this book he reached international recognition and the information that it presents is enhanced by the photographs in the current exhibition.

 

 

Anders Petersen. Café Lehmitz. 1967-1970

 

 

Anders Petersen´s photographs describe in a very human and familiar way the life of Café Lehmitz, a bar that the artist found in Hamburg's Red Light District. This local was the meeting point of prostitutes, transvestites, drug addicts and indigents. There, they developed their life stories and relationships, in which the artist took part during three years. He developed his project between 1967 and 1970 and when it was finished was exhibited for the first time on the same bar. This project was considered a key element in european urban photography.

 

 

Anders Petersen. Café Lehmitz. 1967-1970

 


CentroCentro offers the visitor the chance of becoming part of Café Lehmitz´s extraordinary world, living a night with its extravagant protagonists throughout the exhibition. It can be visited on the fifth floor until September 17th.

 

 


ART MADRID’ 26: 21 YEARS OF CONTEMPORARY ART


Discover all the information about the artists and galleries participating in the 21st edition of Art Madrid. The catalog features a curated selection of the works presented in this edition, along with the most relevant details of the event, making it an essential tool for engaging with the fair’s key figures and exploring the defining elements of today’s art scene.


In 2026, Art Madrid celebrates its 21st edition, further establishing itself as a leading event within Spain’s cultural sector. From March 4 to 8, the Galería de Cristal of the Palacio de Cibeles will once again become a meeting point for galleries, collectors, artists, and contemporary art enthusiasts.


Over the past twenty-one years, the fair has evolved into a dynamic and ever-expanding platform, fostering diversity in artistic languages, techniques, and discourses. In this edition, the Galleries Program brings together around 35 exhibitors from more than seven countries, offering a representative overview of the most recent developments in contemporary creation.


The Art Madrid ’26 catalog serves as a key publication for discovering the work of this edition’s galleries and artists —marked by experimentation and a plurality of perspectives— while also documenting the conceptual axes that shape the fair. As part of the Parallel Program, INHABITING THE EPHEMERAL: A Reflection on the “Species” of Spaces proposes a reflection on space, relationships, and shared experience, expanding the understanding of the fair beyond its commercial dimension and highlighting its cultural and experiential significance.


In addition, the catalog presents the initiatives that complete the program, such as the Open Booth dedicated to emerging creation, the Nebrija Space in collaboration with Nebrija University, the Performance Series “Open Infinite. What the Body Remembers,” the One Shot Collectors Program, and the Patronage Program, reaffirming the fair’s commitment to supporting, mediating, and accompanying contemporary art at every stage.

We invite you to discover more about Art Madrid ’26 through the catalog of its 21st edition — a publication that, beyond serving as documentary memory, becomes a cartography of the present artistic moment and an open door to new ways of inhabiting contemporary art.