“The British celebrate one or two flagship artists and otherwise treat contemporary art as a silly joke, whereas the Germans are better informed and more involved,” explains Tony Cragg, a British sculptor, who has lived in Germany since 1977. He is the director of the Kunstakademie Düsseldorf, a prestigious arts academy, but his studio is a half-hour away in Wuppertal, his first wife’s hometown. Mr Cragg has always been impressed by the status of art in the region. North Rhine-Westphalia has a huge number of art clubs, halls, houses and museums (known as Kunstvereine, Kunsthallen, Kunsthaüser and Kunstmuseen). “After World War II, contemporary art was seen as a way of regenerating German society,” says the sculptor, who speaks English with the cadence of a native German speaker. “They were looking for a new perspective and artists gave it to them.”

via http://www.economist.com/node/16739822.

Seriously, check this guy out.  I immediately fell in love with his work and I think you will too.  His sculpture has this great sense of grandeur.