Culture for everyone | behncke gallery ■ ludwig space

Max Wagner, the managing director of the Gasteig, is in demand as a resilient cultural manager. Born in Munich in 1969, he first studied law and then singing. After several years as a lawyer and singer, Max Wagner first became managing director of the Stuttgart Chamber Orchestra and managing director of the Staatstheater am Gärtnerplatz in Munich before he took over the Gasteig, Europe's largest cultural center, in 2016. For him, the central task of the Gasteig is to make culture possible for everyone, to create spaces in which people can meet and experience and enjoy culture in all forms, without social barriers, easily accessible and open to everyone and everything.

A highlight of this season for Max Wagner is the Flower Power Festival 2023, which is present throughout Munich with around 850 events over eight months. The Gasteig initiated this festival together with the Kunsthalle, the Botanical Garden and the Biotopia Natural History Museum. The central theme: nature in the city. The special feature: It is not curated. Culture for everyone - the motto also applies here.

One of Max Wagner's major concerns is implementing this openness in his own company. His goal is to live a corporate culture that consists of a community and involves every individual in decisions, developments and processes.

After the Gasteig building in Haidhausen was in need of renovation, the cultural center moved to the interim site Gasteig HP8 in Sendling in 2021. As the client, the Gasteig managed to have both the Isarphilharmonie and all other interim buildings used by the Gasteig built and renovated in the shortest possible time and within the previously specified budget. With the acoustically highly praised Isarphilharmonie, the listed Hall E and a very colorful mix, the Gasteig is experimenting here for the culture of the future.

The conversation will take place in ludwig space, a place for dialogue and networking that I founded explicitly as a "Munich showcase" for precisely these future issues.

The Munich Speech® is an exclusive, international, non-profit series of events, to discuss cutting-edge art- and culture-topics in a private surrounding. The name Munich Speech® derives from the celebrated series „Speeking about your own country: Germany“ at the Kammerspiele Munich in 1985 with Joseph Beuys.

Produced and presented since 2014 by Dietlinde Behncke (cultural manager and journalist, formerly at ZDF headquarter Berlin), the focus lies on outstanding positions/ personalities, who change, take action for or develop visions for Munich or change an institution in the world from Munich and who receive direct and immediate attention through the Munich Speech®. Due to the corona pandemic, there were also Munich Speech® digital live streams in 2020-2022.

The events took place three to four times a year until 2022 in André and Dietlinde Behncke's private apartment. The events are currently taking place at behncke gallery I ludwig space, since the gallery was founded on January 31, 2023.
Previous guests in 2017 included Dr. Roger Diederen (Director Kunsthalle Munich) with the FAUST-FESTIVAL MUNICH, 2018 Dr. Angelika Nollert (Director Die Neue Sammlung - The Design Museum in the Pinakothek der Moderne), 2019 Alexander Liebreich (Conductor and artistic director Richard-Strauss-Festival Garmisch-Partenkirchen), 2022 Dr. Eva Kraus (Director Bundeskunsthalle Bonn) "No future without transformation?" or Andrea Lissoni (in 2021 and 2022 - Artistic Director Haus der Kunst) and Sarah Haugeneder (Boardmember Various Others) about VARIOUS OTHERS in its 5th year or Prof. Bernhard Maaz (Director General of the Bavarian State Painting Collections) on the subject of "Art deals with the essence of life".