Art Activities

Dr. Carls is a passionate independent art historian by heart, though he earns his living as a medical doctor, balancing his love for art with the practicalities of his profession.

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Dr Carls studied History of Art and Classical Archaeology at the Universities of Erlangen and Freiburg in Germany. Later he pursued courses in Art History in Italy and the US, concentrating on Italian Renaissance and Chinese Art. During recent years he attended conferences at different Universities and Museums, incl the Louvre, the Albertina, the National Gallery and the British Museum.

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His main activities regarding Western Art are in Italian Renaissance with focus on drawings by Michelangelo and Raphael, Rembrandt’s late work, Cezanne’s watercolours and Paul Klee’s abstract side. There are many other interests, like Picasso, French Impressionism, German Expressionism and American Abstract Expressionism.

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His activities regarding Chinese Art are studying the neolithic Liangzhu culture, Shang Bronzes as well as Tang and Song ceramics.

Seven years ago, Dr Carls started to study a rather fascinating single artist, Zao Wou Ki (Zhao Wuji) (1920 – 2013), who is possibly the one artist who bridges best Eastern and Western cultures.

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Whilst well known in France, the US and China, Zao is little known in Germany, Austria, Italy, UK and other northern European countries.

The interest has become so deep that Dr Carls organised together with the director of the Franz Marc Museum in Kochel, south of Munich, a symposium about their painting of the so-called Oracle Bone Period “Stele for a friend”. It is planned to hold a larger exhibition in 2029.

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For June 2025 Dr Carls organises a two-week exhibition with 30 works in Oxford - view here

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Although the majority of his activities are driven by personal interest rather than financial gain, Dr. Carls offers guidance to a select group of friends and collectors on art acquisitions, drawing on nearly five decades of expertise in the art market.