Of course, a visit to one of Hamburg’s museums involves looking at the valuable and rare old pieces on display in our magnificent buildings, but there are more than just museums here! You’ll also find a number of smaller, owner-operated galleries, as well as contemporary art, pop up installations in the city centre’s most beautiful spots, street art that adds pizzazz and colour to the walls of buildings and collections aimed specifically at the littlest visitors.
Hamburg is a city of museums, in which many impressive collections can be found that tell stories and recount our history vividly. The art museums, five of which have joined together to form the Kunstmeile Hamburg, can be considered the heart of the museum district. The Hamburger Kunsthalle, one of Germany’s most important art museums, has an extensive collection that ranges from the Middle Ages to the present day. It is also the ‘home’ of Caspar David Friedrich’s iconic painting Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog. In addition, the Deichtorhallen not only showcase contemporary art and photography, the buildings themselves are also impressive to look at thanks to their open steel and glass architecture.
The Museum of Hamburg History is proud to be able to trace Hamburg’s journey from being a small and humble settlement to becoming the gateway to the world. Of course, there is a lot to tell, which has made the establishment one of Europe’s largest museums of urban history. The museum is currently being modernised and is closed; the special exhibition, library, gastronomy and museum shop continue to welcome visitors. The reopening is planned for 2027.
While the collections in most Hamburg museums are very extensive, the Millerntor Gallery’s focus is the works’ ephemeral nature. Each year, artists paint new wall and ceiling murals on the main and south stands of the FC St. Pauli football stadium. A large part of the proceeds from the art festival, which lasts several days, goes to the Viva con Agua charitable project.
By the way, open-air art and the city of Hamburg go hand in hand – large graffiti artworks dominate the cityscape, and the open-air gallery in Harburg bears the apt name Walls Can Dance. In the summer, the MS Artville Festival in Wilhelmsburg not only displays sculptures, installations and paintings, it also provides the backdrop for concerts, readings and the Slamville programme, which attracts popular and well-known authors and poetry slammers alike every year.
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