Museum Folkwang
Essen, Germany

Fólkvangr (people’s meadow): a term used in the Old Norse epic verses, Edda, to describe the abode of the goddess Freya. Museum Folkwang was founded by Karl Ernst Osthaus (1874–1921) in the Westphalian industrial town of Hagen in 1902. The then art history, literature and philosophy student acquired the necessary funds by inheritance. From its beginnings as an art collection supplemented by natural history and arts-and-craft pieces, it soon developed into a pioneering modern art museum in Germany. As the first public collection in Germany, Museum Folkwang purchased and exhibited works by trailblazers in Modernism such as Cézanne, Gauguin, van Gogh and Matisse. Following the death of the museum’s founder in 1921, the newly-founded Folkwang-Museumverein e.V., a progressive initiative formed by art aficionados from Essen, purchased the Osthaus collection for the city of Essen and consolidated the collection with the Municipal Art Museum, established in 1906, to create Museum Folkwang.

Today Museum Folkwang is one of the most prominent art museums in Germany with outstanding collections of painting and sculpture from the 19th century, Classical Modernism and the post-1945 period, as well as photography, to which Museum Folkwang has dedicated its own department since 1979.

Henri Matisse, Icare (Ikarus), 1947 © Succession H. Matisse / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2023. Photograph: Museum Folkwang, Essen
Museum Folkwang
Essen, Germany

Fólkvangr (people’s meadow): a term used in the Old Norse epic verses, Edda, to describe the abode of the goddess Freya. Museum Folkwang was founded by Karl Ernst Osthaus (1874–1921) in the Westphalian industrial town of Hagen in 1902. The then art history, literature and philosophy student acquired the necessary funds by inheritance. From its beginnings as an art collection supplemented by natural history and arts-and-craft pieces, it soon developed into a pioneering modern art museum in Germany. As the first public collection in Germany, Museum Folkwang purchased and exhibited works by trailblazers in Modernism such as Cézanne, Gauguin, van Gogh and Matisse. Following the death of the museum’s founder in 1921, the newly-founded Folkwang-Museumverein e.V., a progressive initiative formed by art aficionados from Essen, purchased the Osthaus collection for the city of Essen and consolidated the collection with the Municipal Art Museum, established in 1906, to create Museum Folkwang.

Today Museum Folkwang is one of the most prominent art museums in Germany with outstanding collections of painting and sculpture from the 19th century, Classical Modernism and the post-1945 period, as well as photography, to which Museum Folkwang has dedicated its own department since 1979.

Henri Matisse, Icare (Ikarus), 1947 © Succession H. Matisse / VG Bild-Kunst, Bonn 2023. Photograph: Museum Folkwang, Essen
  • The Unspoken Things
    Photo Series
    Wlasta Laura
    The Moravian folk costume (kroj) is a traditional clothing ensemble that originates from the Moravia region of the Czech Republic. This costume reflects the cultural heritage and history of the Moravian people. The Moravian folk costume typically consists of various garments and accessories that vary depending on the specific region within Moravia. (more…)
  • Adam Pendleton: To Divide By
    Sep 22, 2023 – Jan 15, 2024
    Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum
    St. Louis, USA
    “What is your name?” “Where are you from?” “How did you end up here?” “Can you feel it?” “Does it hurt?” With these and other questions, the American artist Adam Pendleton’s solo exhibition at the Mildred Lane Kemper Art Museum sets up an elaborate call-and-response network that articulates a sense of history as fragmented poetics. The exhibition will showcase a polyvocal assemblage of new and recent paintings, drawings, and video portraits that together reveal Pendleton’s interest in creating a conversation between mediums, as well as his belief in abstraction’s capacity to destabilize and disrupt. (more…)