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

Top exhibitionsArt heaven, Kant and the climate crisis

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

  • West view of Haus Lange
    Volker Döhne, Kunstmuseen Krefeld, Since 1955, Haus Lange has been known as a place where contemporary, experimental art and architecture come together
    Partly furnished, excellent view
    Kunstmuseen Krefeld, Krefeld
    24. Apr 2025 - 21. Sept 2025
    Celebration of the 70th anniversary of Haus Lange with an exhibition highlighting the interaction between architecture and art through various media.
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  • Jianfeng Pan (*1973), Northern Ocean, 2023, ink, xuan paper, 138 x 204 cm
    Foto: Jianfeng Pan / Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Jianfeng Pan (*1973), Northern Ocean, 2023, ink, xuan paper, 138 x 204 cm
    Ink walks
    Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Köln
    24. Apr 2025 - 29. Jun 2025
    The exhibition 'Ink Walks' at the Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne presents the impressive works on paper by contemporary Chinese artist Jianfeng Pan.
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  • Oberhausen Palace is a central point of contact for fans of the visual arts
    Ludwiggalerie Schloss Oberhausen, Foto: Thomas Wolf, Oberhausen Palace is a central point of contact for fans of the visual arts
    I say. LORIOT - artist, critic and caricaturist
    Ludwiggalerie Schloss Oberhausen, Oberhausen
    24. Apr 2025 - 18. May 2025
    The Ludwiggalerie Schloss Oberhausen is honoring Vicco von Bülow, better known as Loriot, in an exhibition that sheds light on his multifaceted career as an artist and social critic.
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  • From left to right: Merce Cunningham, Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, M.C. Richards, Bob Catoin and Jasper Johns, 1958
    Museum Ludwig, From left to right: Merce Cunningham, Robert Rauschenberg, John Cage, M.C. Richards, Bob Catoin and Jasper Johns, 1958
    Five friends
    Museum Ludwig, Köln
    3. Oct 2025 - 11. Jan 2026
    The exhibition "Five Friends" at the Museum Ludwig sheds light on the relationships and influence of five influential artists of the 20th century on post-war art.
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  • The LWL Museum of Art and Culture is dedicated to a total of 1000 years of Western art and cultural history on 7500 square meters of exhibition space
    Elisabeth Deiters-Keul, The LWL Museum of Art and Culture is dedicated to a total of 1000 years of Western art and cultural history on 7500 square meters of exhibition space
    Kirchner. Picasso.
    LWL-Museum für Kunst und Kultur, Münster
    26. Sept 2025 - 18. Jan 2026
    The exhibition "Kirchner. Picasso." at the LWL Museum of Art and Culture examines the connections and differences between the works of these two exceptional artists.
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  • Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night looks more than impressive on the Visiodrom's 360-degree screen
    Visiodrom GmbH, Vincent van Gogh's Starry Night looks more than impressive on the Visiodrom's 360-degree screen
    Vincent van Gogh - Longing
    Gaskessel Event GmbH, Wuppertal
    24. Apr 2025 - 31. Dec 2025
    Explore the virtual art presentation of Vincent van Gogh's works at the Visiodrom in the Gaskessel Wuppertal, North Rhine-Westphalia, on Europe's largest 360-degree screen.
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  • Marc Chagall, The Bastille, 1953, oil on canvas, private collection
    Comité Chagall, VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024, Marc Chagall, The Bastille, 1953, oil on canvas, private collection
    Marc Chagall - Visual languages
    Kunstmuseum Pablo Picasso Münster, Münster
    24. Apr 2025 - 8. Jun 2025
    The exhibition "Marc Chagall - Visual Languages" shows the connection between art and literature in the work of the painter-poet, with over 100 paintings, drawings and graphics.
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  • Eugène Boudin, Trouville, Beach scene 1880, oil on wood, Museum Langmatt, Langmatt Sidney and Jenny Brown Foundation, Baden, Switzerland
    Foto: Jean-Pierre Kuhn, Schweizerisches Institut für Kunstwissenschaft, Zürich, Eugène Boudin, Trouville, Beach scene 1880, oil on wood, Museum Langmatt, Langmatt Sidney and Jenny Brown Foundation, Baden, Switzerland
    Swiss treasures
    Wallraf-Richartz-Museum & Fondation Corboud, Köln
    24. Apr 2025 - 27. Jul 2025
    Discover the 'Swiss Treasures' at the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, an exhibition of masterpieces of French Impressionism from the Museum Langmatt.
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  • Svenja John, NOKOMIS brooch, Berlin, 2010
    Foto: DetlefSchumacher.com, Svenja John, NOKOMIS brooch, Berlin, 2010
    The fascination of jewelry. 7000 years of jewelry art at the MAKK
    Museum für Angewandte Kunst Köln, Köln
    24. Apr 2025 - 30. Dec 2025
    Discover the impressive exhibition 'Fascination Jewelry. 7000 years of jewelry history with 370 exhibits can be admired here.
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Music, science, society

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  • The LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn is one of the oldest museums in Germany. Its façade radiates modernity
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, The LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn is one of the oldest museums in Germany. Its façade radiates modernity
    MUSIC! feel the beat
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Bonn
    24. Apr 2025 - 27. Apr 2025
    The "MUSIC! Feel the Beat" exhibition at the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn shows the unifying power of music and the development of music technology.
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  • Emmanuele Baccinelli, Phantomias, private collection
    Disney, Emmanuele Baccinelli, Phantomias, private collection
    Superheroes
    NRW-Forum Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf
    24. Apr 2025 - 11. May 2025
    The NRW-Forum in Düsseldorf is presenting an exhibition about superheroes, who are icons of pop culture and symbols of democracy and hope.
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    Günter Netzer - the seventies
    Deutsches Fußballmuseum, Dortmund
    24. Apr 2025 - 30. Sept 2025
    The special exhibition at the German Football Museum in Dortmund celebrates the golden age of soccer in the 1970s and the career of Günter Netzer, the first pop icon of German soccer.
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  • Lucian Freud, Head of a Woman, 1988-1990, MGKSiegen, Lambrecht-Schadeberg Collection
    The Estate of Lucian Freud Bridgeman Images, Lucian Freud, Head of a Woman, 1988-1990, MGKSiegen, Lambrecht-Schadeberg Collection
    Look, the looks
    Museum für Gegenwartskunst Siegen, Siegen
    24. Apr 2025 - 15. Jun 2025
    The exhibition "Schau, die Blicke" at the Museum für Gegenwartskunst Siegen explores the theme of "seeing and being seen" through various artistic media.
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  • Two permanent exhibitions and regular special shows provide insights into the animal and plant world at the LWL Museum of Natural History
    LWL, Oblonczyk, Two permanent exhibitions and regular special shows provide insights into the animal and plant world at the LWL Museum of Natural History
    Genes - diversity of life
    LWL-Museum für Naturkunde, Münster
    24. Apr 2025 - 31. Dec 2025
    Discover the fascinating world of genes in the exhibition "Genes - Diversity of Life" at the LWL Museum of Natural History in Münster.
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  • Imperial palace with St. Bartholomew's Chapel
    Karl Heinz Schäfer, Tourist Information Paderborn, Imperial palace with St. Bartholomew's Chapel
    1,250 years of Westphalia
    LWL-Museum in der Kaiserpfalz, Paderborn
    1. May 2025 - 28. Feb 2026
    Celebration of the 1250th anniversary of Westphalia in 2025 with an anniversary program and exhibitions at the LWL Museum in the Kaiserpfalz in Paderborn. The history and culture of the region are told here.
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  • Conrad Felixmüller, Child in front of a blast furnace, 1927
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Foto: Jürgen Vogel, Conrad Felixmüller, Child in front of a blast furnace, 1927
    Brave new world of work. 1890-1940
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Bonn
    13. Nov 2025 - 12. Apr 2026
    The exhibition "Brave new world of work. 1890-1940" at the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn sheds light on the changes in the world of work and their artistic treatment.
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  • Room attendant in the plenary chamber of the German Bundestag, 17.6.1971
    J.H. Darchinger/Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, Room attendant in the plenary chamber of the German Bundestag, 17.6.1971
    Jupp Darchinger. The eye of the republic
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Bonn
    12. Jun 2025 - 14. Sept 2025
    The anniversary exhibition "Jupp Darchinger. The Eye of the Republic" at the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn honors the photographer who documented the Bonn Republic.
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  • The collection of the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn comprises countless objects from over 450,000 years of Rhenish life and cultural history
    Michael Sondermann, The collection of the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn comprises countless objects from over 450,000 years of Rhenish life and cultural history
    The Rhine. Life by the river
    LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn, Bonn
    24. Apr 2025 - 30. Sept 2025
    The special exhibition 'The Rhine. Life on the River' at the LVR-LandesMuseum Bonn offers an archaeological journey through the history of the Rhineland from spring 2025.
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