Horst Antes is regarded as one of the pioneers of New Figuration in Germany. Since the 1960s, his iconic "Kopffüßler" (headfooted figures), his consistent exploration of the figure in space, and his house archetypes have brought him international recognition. 

The catalogue provides an overview of the artist's multifaceted oeuvre—from his early painterly experiments to later groups of works. At its core is the important collection bequeathed to the Sprengel Museum Hannover in 1988 by Wolf and Ursula Hermann, which has since been continuously expanded through foundation funding. 

The exhibition presents paintings, prints, and sculptures that vividly convey the quiet intensity, formal rigor, and enduring relevance of Antes's visual language. Around 80 paintings dating from the early 1960s to the present were arranged by Antes himself in an installation-like presentation. The display is complemented by the monumental seven-part sculpture ensemble "Garden of the 7 Monuments of Desire," created for the Federal Garden Show in Karlsruhe and now housed at the Ludwig Forum Aachen.

Horst Antes (b. 1936) is a German painter, printmaker, and sculptor. He studied painting under HAP Grieshaber at the Academy of Fine Arts in Karlsruhe. In 1967, he presented his sculptures for a "Garden of the 7 Monuments of Desire" as part of the Federal Garden Show in Karlsruhe. Antes is himself a collector of a wide variety of objects.