Michael Triegel's works – from altarpieces to portraits to still lifes and landscape watercolors – combine masterful painting technique with an intensive engagement with art history. Inspired by the forms of the Italian Renaissance, mannerism, and Spanish baroque, he creates pictorial worlds in which he incorporates, reconfigures, and interprets elements of ancient mythology, biblical salvation history, and the cultural-historical repertoire. Through the old master glazing technique combined with highly topical content, Triegel creates pictorial worlds that are both timeless and surprising.

The Aachen exhibition presents Triegel's diversity of expression in its range: from large-format works of the 90s to his latest work Young Man from Procida (2025), which combines medieval image tradition, lived faith practice, and contemporary portraiture. The exhibition thus offers a unique opportunity to experience the multifaceted work of this significant contemporary painter. It showcases not only his masterful technique but also his ability to depict complex themes in a way that seems traditional yet provokes.

Highlights of the exhibition include his portrait of Pope Benedict XVI (2010) as well as the much-discussed design for the central panel of the Cranach altar in Naumburg Cathedral (2022).