Tourismus NRW e.V., Bienenwaben Installation im Folkwang Museum in Essen

Foto: Achim Kukulies, Ausstellungsansicht der Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen

Kusama, Courbet and lots of Monet

Top exhibitions

The museums in North Rhine-Westphalia offer a wide range of exciting exhibitions with different focal points. Art and culture enthusiasts can look forward to works by renowned painters, sculptors and photographers. Institutions show exhibits on important music groups. Historical events, historical personalities and social phenomena also play a role. Below you will find an overview of the top exhibitions on offer this year. They are divided into the areas of "Art, Design, Architecture" and "Music, Science, Society".

Art, design, architecture

The fascination of jewelry. 7000 years of jewelry art at the MAKK
Museum für Angewandte Kunst Köln, Köln
30. May 2026 - 30. Dec 2026
Discover the impressive exhibition 'Fascination Jewelry. 7000 years of jewelry history with 370 exhibits can be admired here.
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Monet - Master of Impressionism
Phoenix des Lumières, Dortmund
30. May 2026 - 30. Jun 2026
The immersive exhibition 'Monet - Master of Impressionism' in Dortmund presents over 200 works by Claude Monet, complemented by a short format on Henri Rousseau.
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Chained to the Rhythm. Of man and nature
Museumsverein Morsbroich e.V., Leverkusen
30. May 2026 - 7. Jun 2026
The Museum Morsbroich is celebrating its 75th anniversary with a unique exhibition that combines nature and culture and challenges traditional museum rules.
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The lunar year of the horse
Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Köln
30. May 2026 - 31. Jan 2027
The exhibition "The Lunar Year of the Horse" at the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne sheds light on the cultural significance of the horse in China, Korea and Japan.
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Manifesta 16 Ruhr
Manifesta 16 Ruhr Office, c/o Regionalverband Ruhr, Essen
21. Jun 2026 - 4. Oct 2026
Manifesta 16 Ruhr, a major European traveling biennial for contemporary art, will take place in the Ruhr region in 2026 and will use empty post-war churches as exhibition venues.
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Katharina Sieverding & Joseph Beuys
Museum Schloss Moyland, Bedburg-Hau
11. Oct 2026 - 7. Feb 2027
The special exhibition "Katharina Sieverding & Joseph Beuys - Jeder Mensch ein Künstler..." at Museum Schloss Moyland sheds light on the artists' time together at the Düsseldorf Art Academy and their political and social concerns.
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Music, science, society

Behind Beauty
LWL-Museum Textilwerk, Bocholt
30. May 2026 - 1. Nov 2026
The exhibition 'Behind Beauty' at the LWL-Museum Textilwerk Bocholt questions ideals of beauty, role models and the role of advertising in the beauty industry.
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SUPERHEROES - The story of Musiala and Wirtz
Deutsches Fußballmuseum, Dortmund
30. May 2026 - 31. May 2026
In 2026, the German Football Museum presents the exhibition 'SUPERHEROES - The Story of Musiala and Wirtz', a multimedia tribute to the soccer stars.
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Meal time! How food connects us
LWL-Museum für Archäologie und Kultur, Herne, Herne
30. May 2026 - 13. Sept 2026
The exhibition 'Mahlzeit! How food connects us' at the LWL Museum of Archaeology and Culture in Herne examines the cultural history of food and its social significance.
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Wanderlust. On the road with Felix the rabbit
LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur, Münster
30. May 2026 - 13. Sept 2026
The exhibition 'Wanderlustig. On the road with Felix the rabbit' at the LWL-Museum Münster offers an interactive journey around the world through art, culture and sustainable tourism.
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Two million years of migration
Neanderthal Museum, Mettmann
30. May 2026 - 1. Nov 2026
The exhibition "Two Million Years of Migration" at the Neanderthal Museum in Mettmann sheds light on the deep-rooted mobility in human history.
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Amazônia. Indigenous worlds
Bundeskunsthalle, Bonn
30. May 2026 - 9. Aug 2026
The Bundeskunsthalle in Bonn is presenting the exhibition "Amazônia. Indigenous Worlds", which sheds light on the culture and way of life of the indigenous peoples of the Amazon region.
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Top exhibitions

The fascination of jewelry. 7000 years of jewelry art at the MAKK

Monet - Master of Impressionism

Chained to the Rhythm. Of man and nature

The lunar year of the horse

Manifesta 16 Ruhr

Katharina Sieverding & Joseph Beuys

Behind Beauty

SUPERHEROES - The story of Musiala and Wirtz

Meal time! How food connects us

Wanderlust. On the road with Felix the rabbit

Two million years of migration

Amazônia. Indigenous worlds

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