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

  • 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
    16. May 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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  • 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
    16. May 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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    Yayoi Kusama. Works from 70 years
    Museum Ludwig, Köln
    14. Mar 2026 - 2. Aug 2026
    Comprehensive retrospective of the artist Yayoi Kusama at the Museum Ludwig, Cologne, sheds light on seven decades of her work, including unpublished and new works.
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  • Maurice de Vlaminck, The Seine at Bougival, 1906, Hasso Plattner Collection
    VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2025, Maurice de Vlaminck, The Seine at Bougival, 1906, Hasso Plattner Collection
    Maurice de Vlaminck: Rebel of modernism
    Von der Heydt Museum, Wuppertal
    16. May 2025 - 18. May 2025
    First comprehensive retrospective of the French painter Maurice de Vlaminck in Germany, presented by the Von der Heydt-Museum and the Museum Barberini.
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  • Imperial Palace, Hamaguri Gate, etching and aquatint, 17 × 21 cm, 1995
    Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst Köln (MOK), Imperial Palace, Hamaguri Gate, etching and aquatint, 17 × 21 cm, 1995
    Tanaka Ryōhei. From line to landscape
    Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst, Köln
    16. May 2025 - 21. Sept 2025
    Discover the fascinating world of Japanese graphic artist Tanaka Ryōhei at the Museum of East Asian Art Cologne and take advantage of the MuseumsCard.
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  • Marc Chagall, The Violinist, 1911, Le violoniste, oil on canvas, 94.5 × 69.5 cm, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Photo: Achim Kukulies, Düsseldorf
    VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2024, Marc Chagall, The Violinist, 1911, Le violoniste, oil on canvas, 94.5 × 69.5 cm, Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Photo: Achim Kukulies, Düsseldorf
    Chagall
    Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen, Düsseldorf
    16. May 2025 - 10. Aug 2025
    The Kunstsammlung Nordrhein-Westfalen is presenting a comprehensive exhibition of the early works of the Russian-French painter Marc Chagall, highlighting his experiments with Fauvism and Cubism as well as his connection with Jewish motifs and Russian folklore.
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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
    16. May 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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  • The Kaiser Wilhelm Museum is adorned with the 1.7-ton bronze group Genius of the Arts
    Johannes Höhn, Tourismus NRW e.V., The Kaiser Wilhelm Museum is adorned with the 1.7-ton bronze group Genius of the Arts
    Emma Talbot meets Johan Thorn Prikker
    Kaiser Wilhelm Museum, Krefeld
    3. May 2026 - 24. Jan 2027
    In her latest exhibition, British artist Emma Talbot explores Johan Thorn Prikker's monumental mural cycle "Ages of Life", which is on display at the Kaiser Wilhelm Museum in Krefeld.
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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
    16. May 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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Music, science, society

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