Haus der Kunst gallery presents a historical and architectural challenge: opened in the Nazi era as the 'House of German Art' and home to notorious exhibitions such as 'An overview of degenerate art', the building was immediately closed after the War. Renovated and reopened in the early nineties, the gallery has now become an internationally renowned exhibition center under the directorship of the multi-talented Christoph Vitali. There is no permanent collection, but temporary exhibitions with interesting events (museum nights, concerts, readings) are held regularly.
Thanks to Emperor Wilhelm II, this small but exquisite collection has remained in Munich. The previous owner, Adolf Friedrich Graf von Schack, had betrothed his collection of 250 contemporary paintings to the royal family, but the emperor decided to leave the pictures where they were. When the Prussian Embassy was rebuilt in 1911, the Schack pictures were moved to a new wing, where they have remained to this day. The collection includes works by Böcklin, Lenbach, Schwind, Feuerbach and Spitzweg as well as numerous landscapes.
These splendid artists' studios, built at the turn of the century, are a stylish setting for rotating art exhibitions. The museum specializes in fin-de-siècle art, but also puts on some successful exhibitions of modern arts and crafts. The magnificently decorated rooms on the ground floor show the exquisite taste for which the former owner of the house, Munich artist Franz von Stuck, was well known.
The former residence and studio of artist Franz von Lenbach has been home to Munich's municipal art gallery since 1929. The collection at Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus comprises of 19th and 20th century works by local artists as well as a fine arts collection by the Blauer Reiter (Blue Rider) group of artists, including Kandinsky, Yavlensky, Münter, Marc and Macke. Other rooms feature works by contemporary artists such as Beuys and Kiefer. Special exhibitions take place in the Kunstbau next door.