<Alexander Kluge, filmmaker, writer, philosopher, 1932–2026 — Art News
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candle obituary calendar_today Thursday, March 26, 2026

Alexander Kluge, filmmaker, writer, philosopher, 1932–2026

Alexander Kluge, the influential German filmmaker, writer, and philosopher, has died at the age of 94. A key figure in the New German Cinema movement and a major intellectual heir to the Frankfurt School, Kluge's career spanned law, film, television production, and literature, leaving a significant mark on postwar German culture.

His death marks the passing of a central figure in 20th-century European intellectual and artistic life. Kluge's work bridged critical theory and popular media, from his foundational role in the Oberhausen Manifesto to his late-career experiments with AI in filmmaking, ensuring his legacy as a polymath who continuously shaped German cultural discourse.