Cities & Culture

Gunzenhauser Museum Chemnitz

The exceptional collection of Munich gallery owner Dr Alfred Gunzenhauser, regarded as one of the most significant art collections in Germany, is open to visitors in Chemnitz.

The era of emerging Modernism at the start of the 20th century was an important time for Chemnitz thanks to a number of globally successful entrepreneurs who had an interest in art. No end of new builds designed by eminent architects started to pop up, including the former bank building that was completed in 1930 and has been placed under monumental protection. This stunning example of the New Objectivity architectural movement is now home to the highly regarded Gunzenhauser Collection. Dr Alfred Gunzenhauser, a man with a passion for art, gifted 2,459 works by 270 artists to the city of Chemnitz.

This generous donation included 290 pieces of art by Otto Dix, making it one of the world's largest collections of the artist's work. Gunzenhauser's decision was a stroke of luck for the city since its own art collections, comprising almost 1,000 examples of Classical Modernism, were lost during the Nazis' reign of terror. The Chemnitz Art Collections, displayed on Theaterplatz square and featuring a large number of works by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, and the Gunzenhauser Museum on Falkeplatz square have been brought together under both institutions' names to form an unmissable celebration of Classical Modernism. Opening times: Tuesday, Thursday to Sunday and public holidays: 11 am–6 pm, Wednesday: 2 pm–9 pm

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