Kunstmuseen Krefeld, German Museum of the Year 2022

Since the immediate post-war decades, Krefeld has also emerged as a crucial hub for engaging with contemporary art avant-garde. Through early and momentous exhibitions featuring the works of Yves Klein, Joseph Beuys, and Gerhard Richter, Krefeld has etched its name into international museum history.

While the founding phase of Krefeld's "Citizens' Museum" aimed to cultivate a style-defining "good taste," the Krefeld Museum, led by Katia Baudin since 2016, continues to emphasize the idea of using art and design to illustrate the diversity of everyday experiences. Visitors are thus provided with a nuanced opportunity to encounter a wide array of aesthetic forms and modes of representation.

The successful fusion of art and architecture is strikingly exemplified by the fact that the museum has had access to the two iconic Bauhaus villas, Haus Lange and Haus Esters, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in the late 1920s, for decades. The impressive, clear-cut architecture has repeatedly inspired exhibiting artists to engage fruitfully with the space.

One often overlooked yet highly significant example of minimalist artistry, Yves Klein's 1961 "Empty Room," can still be experienced at Haus Lange. Under the evocative title "Productive Spaces," the Krefeld villa ensemble currently hosts a presentation of art and design from the region.

A hallmark of the museum is its successful principle of giving artists the initiative to shape their exhibitions and create special site-specific works. Joseph Beuys, for instance, fashioned legendary spaces that can still be visited today in the inner-city "Kaiser Wilhelm Museum," which serves as the headquarters of the Krefeld Museums.

In commemoration of the Beuys anniversary year in 2021, Krefeld presented a noteworthy exhibition that brought together the dialogues of two art pioneers, Marcel Duchamp and Joseph Beuys, offering an engaging and intelligent challenge to exhibition-goers.