kritische berichte

kritische berichte. Zeitschrift für Kunst- und Kulturwissenschaften (stylized in lower case, often abbreviated kb) is a German-language academic journal for art and cultural studies. It is published by the Ulmer Verein – Verband für Kunst- und Kulturwissenschaften e.V. and serves both as a scholarly periodical and as the association's official bulletin (Mitteilungsorgan). The journal was founded in 1972 against the backdrop of the methodological crisis of art history as a discipline and the emergence of a new, critical art history (new art history). Its first issue appeared in 1973. The journal appears quarterly and is organized around thematic issues. Its editorial focus is a critical art history and emancipatory perspectives on architecture, cultural studies and image studies. It publishes essays and reports from all areas of art and cultural studies, with attention to social background and economic and political context, and functions as a platform for methodological debate as well as a forum for transdisciplinary contributions on topics such as ethnocentrism, interculturality and gender studies. Over its history the journal has been published by various publishers, most recently by Jonas-Verlag and, since 2023, by Arthistoricum.net (University Library Heidelberg). Since 2025 it appears exclusively in Diamond Open Access at arthistoricum.net; the earlier statement in the German Wikipedia describes the 2023 move as Gold Open Access. The journal's online archive is hosted by Heidelberg University's journals platform. The editorial team is currently composed of Sebastián Eduardo Dávila, Ayşe Güngör, Regine Hess, and, in co-editorial arrangements, Sarah Sigmund with Sabine Weingartner and Amelie Ochs with Rosanna Umbach. The Ulmer Verein is currently advertising an honorary, remote editor position for a five- to six-year term, explicitly encouraging applications from underrepresented groups. The journal is a non-commercial, association-owned scholarly publication rather than a commercial consumer brand. It has no listed status and no ticker; it is owned and issued by the non-profit Ulmer Verein. Its fiftieth anniversary in 2022–2023 was marked by coverage in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung and a roundtable discussion with Monopol and Texte zur Kunst in Kunstforum International.

kritische berichte was founded in 1972, in a period when art history as a discipline was undergoing a methodological crisis and a new, critical art history (new art history) was emerging. The impulse for a cultural-studies-oriented journal that would take up controversial topics not treated or published elsewhere came from diverse demands for a new, critical art studies that would not restrict itself to the classical areas of art history. The first issue appeared in 1973. From its first issue the journal understood itself above all as a platform for an increasingly complex methodological debate and as a forum for transdisciplinary contributions on topics such as ethnocentrism, interculturality and gender studies. It contains essays and reports from all areas of art and cultural studies and informs readers about current developments, with a focus on social background and economic and political context. At the same time it is the official bulletin (Mitteilungsorgan) of the Ulmer Verein – Verband für Kunst- und Kulturwissenschaften e.V. In formal terms, the journal has generally appeared with four issues per year; before the 1990s physical issues were sometimes classified as double numbers. In the first two volumes the volume and year numbering diverged: in 1973 only three issues appeared, but the fourth issue, which appeared only in 1974, was also counted as the first volume (book) of the journal. After that, three double issues appeared in 1974 (1/2, 3/4 and 5/6); since 1975 the first issue of each year is also the first issue of the respective volume (1975 = volume 3; 2019 = volume 47). The journal has three different ID numbers in the Zeitschriftendatenbank: 124818-2 (1973–1975) and 531823-3 (from 1975) for the printed editions, and 2722286-X for the (retro-)digitized copies. Over the decades the journal was published by various publishers, most recently by Jonas-Verlag. Since 2023 it has been published by Arthistoricum.net (University Library Heidelberg); the German Wikipedia describes this as Gold Open Access, while the Ulmer Verein's own announcement states that since 2025 the journal appears exclusively in Diamond Open Access at arthistoricum.net. The online archive is hosted on Heidelberg University's journals platform. The editorial team currently consists of Sebastián Eduardo Dávila, Ayşe Güngör and Regine Hess, together with co-editorial pairs Sarah Sigmund with Sabine Weingartner and Amelie Ochs with Rosanna Umbach. The Ulmer Verein is currently advertising an honorary, remote editor position for a five- to six-year term, explicitly encouraging applications from people whose perspectives remain underrepresented in cultural and academic contexts, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+ persons, people with disabilities, first-generation academics, people with migration history and people with care responsibilities. The journal's fiftieth anniversary around 2022–2023 was marked by coverage in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (Anke Gröner, 27 July 2022) and by a roundtable with Kritische Berichte, Monopol and Texte zur Kunst in Kunstforum International (issue 288, Cologne 2023). Horst Bredekamp has written about the founding circle of the Kritischen Berichte and his fourteen years as editor (1972–1986) in Kritische Berichte 51.2023, no. 1.

• 2026

  Call for a new editor (all genders), applications due Friday 18 September 2026.

• 2025

  Journal appears exclusively in Diamond Open Access at arthistoricum.net.

• 2023

  Journal moves to Arthistoricum.net (University Library Heidelberg); described as Gold Open Access. Roundtable with Kritische Berichte, Monopol and Texte zur Kunst in Kunstforum International issue 288.

• 2022

  Fiftieth anniversary; Anke Gröner's article in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on 27 July 2022.

• 2019

  Volume 47 reached.

• 1975

  From this year the first issue of each year is also the first issue of the respective volume (1975 = volume 3).

• 1974

  Fourth issue of the first volume published; three double issues (1/2, 3/4, 5/6) appeared.

• 1973

  First issue published; only three issues appeared that year.

• 1972

  kritische berichte founded against the backdrop of the methodological crisis of art history and the emergence of new art history.

A critical, transdisciplinary German-language art and cultural studies journal and the official bulletin of the Ulmer Verein, committed to critical art history and emancipatory perspectives; non-commercial and Open Access.

• kritische berichte. Zeitschrift für Kunst- und Kulturwissenschaften

  Quarterly German-language academic journal for art and cultural studies, published by the Ulmer Verein.

• Thematic issues

  The journal concentrates on thematic issues committed to a critical art history and emancipatory perspectives on architecture, cultural studies and image studies.

• Online archive

  Online archive of past thematic issues hosted on Heidelberg University's journals platform.

1. 1Ulmer Verein - Aktuelles Heftulmer-verein.de
2. 2kritische berichte (Wikidata)wikidata.org
3. 3Kritische Berichte (Wikipedia DE)de.wikipedia.org
4. 4Online-Archiv der kritischen berichtejournals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de