The Kunsthalle St. Annen in Lübeck opens up spaces between the monastery ruins and the contemporary gallery building - a place where history and modern art are in dialog.
The Kunsthalle St. Annen is built on the foundations of the former monastery church of the St. Annen monastery, the construction of which began between 1502 and 1515. After the Gothic church burned down in 1843, the ruins and foundation walls were preserved - they were deliberately integrated into the new building, which combines modern architecture and historical heritage. Today's museum building takes up the original floor plan and combines historical building elements with contemporary interior design.
As part of the St. Annen Museum Quarter, the Kunsthalle complements the medieval St. Annen Museum and is dedicated to modern and contemporary art. Its focus is on art from 1945 to the present day - abstract painting, Art Informel, sculpture, media art and expressive positions all find a place here. The collection includes works by important artists such as K.R.H. Sonderborg, Sigmar Polke, Markus Lüpertz, Arnulf Rainer and representatives from northern Germany and Scandinavia.
The architectural claim is part of the experience: remnants of old walls, Gothic portals and modern cubes merge into an exciting whole in which light, space and material enter into a dialog with each other. The Kunsthalle is therefore not just an exhibition, but a work of art itself - a living place where past and present can be seen, heard and felt.
A visit to the Kunsthalle St. Annen means settling down between old walls and new paintings, experiencing art as a bridge between epochs and seeing the present anew in the mirror of history.
