Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus
(Municipal Gallery; 2333 2000;
www.lenbachhaus.de
; Luisenstrasse 33;
10am-6pm Tue-Sun; Königsplatz, Königsplatz)
Late 19th-century portraitist Franz
von Lenbach used his fortune to build a fabulous Tuscan-style home, which his widow
later sold to the city for a pittance but with the proviso that it be used as a museum. To get
things going, she also threw in a bunch of hubbie's works. Today the gallery fills with
fans of the expressionist
Blauer Reiter
(Blue Rider) group founded by Wassily Kandinsky
and Franz Marc in 1911.
Soon joined by August Macke, Gabriele Münter, Alexej von Jawlensky and others, they
rebelled against traditional academy art and instead pursued ground-breaking visions and
themes. Ironically, Lenbach's portraits seem comparatively staid and retro.
Contemporary art is another focal point. The acquisition of Joseph Beuys installation
Show Your Wound
nearly caused a riot in the conservative city council, but the collection
took off anyway. All the big names are here: Gerhard Richter, Sigmar Polke, Anselm
Kiefer, Andy Warhol, Dan Flavin, Richard Serra and Jenny Holzer among them.
Works are also shown in the nearby
Kunstbau
, a 120m-long underground tunnel
above the U-Bahn station Königsplatz.
The Lenbachhaus closed in 2009 for a top-to-bottom renovation directed by stellar Brit-
ish architect Lord Norman Foster. By the time you read this the extended and renovated
building should have reopened to the public.
GALLERY
MUSEUM
Paläontologisches Museum
(Palaeontological Museum; 2180 6630;
www.palmuc.de
; Richard-Wagner-Strasse 10;
admission free; 8am-4pm Mon-Thu, to 2pm Fri; Königsplatz, Königsplatz)
The
curatorial concept of the Paläontologisches Museum could use a little dusting up but oth-
erwise this archaeological trove of prehistoric skulls and bones is anything but stuffy. The
most famous resident is a fossilised archaeopteryx, the creature that forms the evolution-
ary link between reptile and bird.
Jurassic fans can check out the wicked horns on a triceratops skull or the delicate bone
structure of a plateosaurus. What better place to bring the kids when they're passing
through their 'dinosaur phase'?
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität
UNIVERSITY
