Henri Haake (b. 1989 in Lübeck) studied at Universität der Künste Berlin, and Hunter College in New York. He lives and works in Berlin.
In his paintings and drawings, Henri Haake explores the poetic resonance of everyday life through a process shaped by memory, perception and synthesis. Drawing from personal experience, observation, imagination, and art historical reference, his work unfolds as a dialogue between past and present, the visible and the obscured.
Layering, experimentation, and overpainting are essential to his practice, with each surface bearing the imprint of what came before—traces of earlier gestures and submerged forms emerging through the paint. Often, a layered narrative and figures are first constructed, only to be gradually blurred, concealed, and reduced into more ambiguous, often muted or tonal compositions. Stories and forms remain visible, but just beneath the surface, requiring the viewer to revisit the canvas. Through this method, Haake creates a nuanced relationship where absence and presence coexist.
Color plays a quiet but powerful role—more than surface, it becomes a way of sensing. Rather than illustrating, it suggests: guiding the mood, softening forms, and shaping how the viewer connects to the image. His use of color creates an atmosphere that resonates gently, evoking a feeling that’s often more sensed than seen—something we recognize emotionally, even if we can’t quite name it.
Haake’s compositions weave between the playful and the philosophical, drawing viewers into a quiet process of looking, sensing, and rediscovery. Through subtle emotion and layered imagery, he creates visual spaces where the familiar becomes symbolic, inviting reflection on life and how we experience the world.
group exhibitions (selected)
2026 Hyperacuity, Bode, Berlin
2025 Tides and traces, Studio Hanniball & OFFICE
IMPART, Berlin
solo exhibitions
2026 Sub Rosa, Chilli, London
2024 BAD GATEWAY, Obelus, Berlin
NOT YET, NOT ANYMORE, Galerie Diehl, Berlin
FLOATING WORLDS, NAVE, Lisbon
2024 My Body is a Temple, Studio Hanniball, Berlin
Berlin
TOURIST, crowded (Salon am Moritzplatz),
SHUDDER MORNINGS, Cabin, Berlin
BE MY GUEST, NAVE, Lisbon
2023 Another day at the office, OFFICE IMPART,
Berlin
Dammi i colori, Sociedade Nacional de Belas
Artes, Lisboa
Enter Art Fair, OFFICE IMPART, Copenhagen
2022 GOING PLACES, Nicole Gnesa, Munich
2021 AT A MOMENT IN TIME, Kunstverein Arnsberg
2023 OMG, OFFICE IMPART, Berlin
DREAMLINER, Mikael Andersen, Copenhagen
2022 Honey Lotion, OFFICE IMPART, Berlin
2018 Panorama, Studio Dapontegasse, Wien
2012 Roter Rauch, Manzoni Schäper, Berlin
2010 Gleichzeitigkeit, Color Works, Lübeck
group show, OFFICE IMPART, Berlin
2019 Haake - Poznanska, KM28, Berlin
WHAT'S LEFT FROM PARADISE, Rundgänger,
Berlin
Frankfurt am Main (duo)
all out "small" closing, KWADRAT, Berlin
Kommunizierende Röhren, Salon René Holm,
2018 Demi-gros, Save Gallery, Berlin
That´s all right mama, XXY-Raum für Kunst, Berlin
2017 Unexpectations 2 - Wo die Blumen sind, Atrium
Tower, Berlin
Warum bin ich eigentlich Deutscher,
Kunstverein Wiesen
2016 Berlin Masters, A3 Arndt Art Agency, Berlin
Meisterschülerausstellung, UdK, Berlin
Dialog der Residuen- Henri Haake & Jeewi Lee,
Galerie Villa Köppe, Berlin
2015 _ndo, Museum Jorge Rando, Málaga
2014 Umwandlung, Quer-Gallery UDK, Berlin
2013 Open Studio, Hunter College, New York City
Nachschlag, Uferhallen Wedding, Berlin
2012 Berlin-London, Gutshaus Erlenbach, Zürich
Education
2016 Meisterschüler (Master Diploma), Universität der Künste, Berlin, Germany
2013 MFA Exchange Semester, Hunter College, New York City, USA
Solo and Duo Exhibitions
2026 Sub Rosa, Chilli, London, UK (s)
2025 tides and traces, Studio Hanniball, Berlin, Germany (d)
2024 Bad Gateway, Obelus, Berlin, Germany (s)
Floating Worlds, Galeria Nave, Lisbon, Portugal (s)
2023 OMG, Office Impart, Berlin, Germany (s)
DREAMLINER, Mikael Andersen, Copenhagen, Denmark (s)
2022 Honey Lotion, Office Impart, Berlin, Germany (s)
2019 WHAT’S LEFT FROM PARADISE, Rundgänger, Frankfurt am Main, Germany (d)
Haake - Poznanska, KM28, Berlin, Germany (d)
2018 Panorama, Studio Dapontegasse, Vienna, Austria (s)
2017 Dialog der Residuen – Henri Haake & Jeewi Lee, Galerie Villa Köppe, Berlin, Germany (d)
2012 Roter Rauch, Manzoni Schäper, Berlin, Germany (s)
Group Exhibitions
2026 upcoming show curated by Domenico De Chirico, Marc Bibiloni Gallery, Madrid
upcoming show, Cabin, New York, USA
Hyperacuity, Galerie Bode, Berlin, Germany
2025 Not yet, not anymore, Galerie Diehl, Berlin, Germany
2024 My Body is a Temple, Studio Hanniball, Berlin, Germany
TOURIST, crowded, Berlin, Germany
SHUDDER MORNINGS, Cabin, Berlin, Germany
BE MY GUEST, Galeria Nave, Lisbon, Portugal
2023 Dammi i colori, Sociedade Nacional de Belas Artes, Lisbon, Portugal
2022 GOING PLACES, Nicole Gnesa, Munich, Germany
2021 AT A MOMENT IN TIME, Kunstverein Arnsberg, Germany
Group Show, Office Impart, Berlin, Germany
2019 all out "small" closing, KWADRAT, Berlin, Germany
Kommunizierende Röhren, Salon René Holm, Berlin, Germany
2018 Demi-gros, Save Gallery, Berlin, Germany
2017 Warum bin ich eigentlich Deutscher, Kunstverein Wiesen, Germany
2016 Berlin Masters, A3 Arndt Art Agency, Berlin, Germany
2015 _ndo, Museum Jorge Rando, Málaga, Spain
2012 Berlin-London, Gutshaus Erlenbach, Zurich, Switzerland
Prizes
2016 Knispel Prize for Painting and Drawing
Residencies
2026 CABIN Artist Residency, New York, USA (September-October 2026)
2026 Marc Bibiloni Artist Residency, Gilde, Belgium (July 2026)