Rita Ackermann’s drawings and paintings are marked by a conspicuous fusion of childlike innocence and a fascination with the forbidden and occult. This interplay of extremes gives rise to a dreamlike world where beauty and desire are intertwined with aggression and fear: images that read like entries in a deeply introspective diary.

During a visit to Vienna, Ackermann encountered Gustav Klimt’s Beethoven Frieze, the 1902 masterpiece at the Secession. Celebrating Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, the frieze explores the pursuit of happiness and salvation through the arts. Moved by this monumental fresco, Ackermann responded with a series of nineteen pencil drawings created as a tribute to the Viennese Secessionist.