Franz Erhard Walther

Franz Erhard Walther (born July 22, 1939, in Fulda, Germany) is an interdisciplinary installation and conceptual artist known for his fabric objects and activations.

Early life and education Born in 1939 in Fulda, Walther studied successively at the Werkkunstschule Offenbach and the Städelschule from 1957.

Walther later studied at Kunstakademie Düsseldorf in the early 1960s. During his education his professor Karl Otto Götz said 'Mr. Walther, I do not understand at all what you are doing. But you are a serious young man. Go ahead.' He studied under Götz with among others Sigmar Polke and Gerhard Richter.

Career Walther began to experiment with ways to actively involve spectators in the production of the work in the late 1950s. At this time he produced 'word' pictures in a bid to force the viewer to create their own image. Between 1963 and 1969, he created the First Work Set, which consists of 58 activatable pieces that place the viewer in extraordinary interpersonal situations. Under the influence of Pop Art, Walther's textiles became increasingly colorful.

From 1971 to 2009, Walther was Professor at the University of Fine Arts of Hamburg.

In 2008, Walther's WERKSATZ (WORKSET) was performed at the Tate Modern in London as part of "UBS Openings: Live – The Living Currency". Other exhibitions were held at the Hamburger Kunsthalle (2013) and Dia Beacon (2021–2022).

In 2023, Walther was commissioned by Performa for the Performa 23 biennial for which he created his work Creation Needs Action.

Collections Walther's work is in many public collections, including the Art Institute of Chicago; Centre Pompidou, Paris; Dia Art Foundation, New York; Museum of Modern Art, New York; and Staatsgalerie Stuttgart.

Recognition In 1989, Walther was awarded the Edwin Scharff Prize and in 1994 the Piepenbrock Prize for Sculpture.