Main image: Kazimierz Stabrowski (1869 – 1929): Against a Background of Stained Glass Window (Peacock). © National Museum Warschau
Known for its collection of German and European, modern and contemporary art, its programmatic exhibitions and various sculptures and paintings, the Kunsthalle Mannheim is a meeting place for all generations. Not only impressing with a rich selection of artworks, the museum’s architecture is also one of a kind. One will be able to Germany find the brand new contemporary museum building in the centre of Mannheim from 2017 onwards. Its connection to the other building of the Kunsthalle, the Jugendstil-Building, will guarantee an unmistakable architectural ensemble. The Jugendstil-Building comprises of exceptional and historical architectural features from its time of erection in 1907. Recently reopened after a three-year restoration period, the Jugendstil-Building poses as the perfect backdrop for the Kunsthalle’s current exhibition.
Attraction of the Month
Remembering the museum’s roots
An impressive homage to art nouveau Founded in 1907, the Kunsthalle Mannheim soon grew to become one of the most respected civic art collections in Germany. Coining the expression ‘art for all’ with its innovative educational approach, the museum impresses visitors with its seminal exhibitions and remains a strong cultural player in Mannheim and beyond. TEXT: NANE STEINHOFF | PHOTOS: KUNSTHALLE MANNHEIM
56 | Issue 31 | October 2015
For its 300-year anniversary, the city of Mannheim built an exhibition house. The result was the Kunsthalle Mannheim, which opened in 1907 with a big spatial art exhibition in which almost all notable visual artists, architects or designers of that time were represented. The special opening exhibition impressed with entire art nouveau interiors which put the opulent paintings and sculptures in the limelight. More than 100 years later, some of the artists from back then return to the Kunsthalle with the exceptional exhibition The Delicate Glow: On Peacocks and Mother of Pearl in Art Nouveau, which takes up the Kunsthalle’s foundation myth. The exhibition celebrates the Jugendstil’s variation range and sense of beauty around the peacock theme and the material of nacre. Paintings are accompanied by small sculptures, books, designs, furniture, jewellery, fashion accessories or posters. Just a few of the significant names represented are