'Everyone is an artist': behind fat and felt in German artist Joseph Beuys' centenary year

With his felt hat, fat-smeared exhibition spaces and the legendary declaration that 'everyone is an artist,' Joseph Beuys embodied modern art of the post-war 20th century like few others. Photo: Handout

Joseph Beuys was a toweringly disruptive protagonist of 20th-century modern art. In the 100th anniversary year of his birth, his native Germany reflects on the artist's legacy of art for all.

With his felt hat, fat-smeared exhibition spaces and the legendary declaration that "everyone is an artist," Joseph Beuys embodied modern art of the post-war 20th century like few others.