Realism is first of all the nature of painting, whose technical mastery, precision and optical illusion allows one to marvel at the work. But realism is much more than a reflection of reality. The adventure of reality begins where that which is supposedly long-known is newly perceived and where the everyday is newly discovered. For the first time, an extensive survey exhibition is devoted to the equally complex and fascinating phenomenon of realism. Around 200 works from the fields of painting, sculpture, photography and video show how and in what latitude it is possible for artists to transform the diversity of the modern world into pictures. It ranges from the realism of the 19th Century to the New Objectivity and the photo-realism of the 1960s through to contemporary art. Transcending historical and stylistic boundaries, the exhibition and book present the complex topic of the act, of the stilllife and landscape, and the historical picture in eight detailed chapters. The dialogue between generations of artists is sought out. Works by famous stars like Gustave Courbet, Adolph Menzel, Christian Schad, Charles Sheeler, Richard Estes, and Franz Gertsch are represented equally with works by younger artists. The connecting element is always the question of reality and representation of the modern world with all of its contradictions, tensions and beauties. German text.