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

Anish Kapoor
Lehmbruck Museum, Duisburg
11. Jul 2026 - 30. Aug 2026
Discover Anish Kapoor's most extensive exhibition in Germany for over a decade, highlighting his life's work at the Lehmbruck Museum.
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Color! Color!
Cragg Foundation, Wuppertal
12. Sept 2026 - 3. Jan 2027
Discover the exhibition “Color! Color!” at the Waldfrieden Sculpture Park in Wuppertal, which showcases the work of the artists Baumeister, Schlemmer, and Krause.
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The lunar year of the horse
Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Köln
11. Jul 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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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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Beautiful anarchy. Johan Thorn Prikker and his time
Kunstmuseen Krefeld, Krefeld
11. Jul 2026 - 27. Jun 2027
The exhibition "Beautiful Anarchy. Johan Thorn Prikker and his time" at the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum pays tribute to the Dutch artist with a major retrospective.
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Jon Rafman. Main Stream Media
K21 Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf
11. Jul 2026 - 27. Sept 2026
The Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen is presenting the first solo museum exhibition in Germany by Canadian media artist Jon Rafman, which introduces his experimental AI project 'Mainstream Media Network'.
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Music, science, society

Meal time! How food connects us
LWL-Museum für Archäologie und Kultur, Herne, Herne
11. Jul 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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Waste. An exhibition about the global routes of waste
Dortmunder U, Dortmund
11. Jul 2026 - 26. Jul 2026
Discover the special exhibition 'Müll' at Museum Ostwall, Dortmund, which highlights global waste flows and environmental issues through art since the 1960s.
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The history of the Lower Rhine
LVR-Niederrheinmuseum Wesel, Wesel
11. Jul 2026 - 31. Dec 2026
The new permanent exhibition at the LVR-Niederrheinmuseum Wesel sheds light on the history of the Lower Rhine and links regional developments with global themes.
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ASIA POP
NRW-Forum, Düsseldorf
17. Sept 2026 - 23. May 2027
The exhibition 'ASIA POP' at the NRW-Forum Düsseldorf presents the diversity of East Asian pop culture with over 400 exhibits from September 18, 2026.
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Two million years of migration
Neanderthal Museum, Mettmann
11. Jul 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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Survival
Ruhr Museum, Essen
11. Jul 2026 - 5. Sept 2027
The state paleontology exhibition “überLeben” in North Rhine-Westphalia offers insights into prehistoric worlds and shows how life and landscapes have changed over millions of years.
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