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Press Room
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Martin Aas Visiting Museum Ludwig - Sunday, October 22, 2006, Cologne, Germany
Museum Ludwig, located in Cologne, houses one of the most important collections of modern art in Germany. It includes works from PopArt, Abstract and Surrealism, and has one of the largest Picasso collections in Europe.
The museum emerged in 1976 as an independent instituition from the Wallraf-Richartz Museum. It essentially incorporates the Sammlung Haubrich, a collection by Josef Haubrich of art from the years 1914 to 1939 donated to the city of Cologne on 02 May 1946.
Another integral part of the museum is the Sammlung Ludwig, a collection of art by Picasso, Russian avant-garde and American Pop-art artists.
The collection of the Museum Ludwig comprises the most important stages and positions in the development of 20th century art and contemporary art.
Roy Lichtenstein’s “Maybe“, Andy Warhol’s “Brillo Boxes“ and George Segal’s “Restaurant Window”, all icons of American Pop Art, had just been completed when in 1969 they were included as loans in the collection of the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum. The works came from Peter and Irene Ludwig who have built up the biggest collection of Pop Art outside the USA
In 1976 the Museum Ludwig was founded with a gift of 350 works of modern art by the Ludwigs. It was to be the first museum in Cologne to exhibit contemporary art. Apart from pop art the Ludwigs also donated a large collection of Russian Avantgarde from the period 1906 to 1930 and a voluminous collection of several hundred works by Pablo Picasso as a permanent loan. The works by Picasso have meanwhile become the property of the Museum Ludwig thanks to two generous gifts in 1994 and 2001.
The museum has continued to systematically collect contemporary art. New acquisitions were often only a few months old when they were bought. Thus German art from the 70s and 80s, international trends and installations by the younger avantgarde also found their way into the collection of the Museum Ludwig.
The Römisch-Germanisches Museum in Cologne emerged from the Roman and Germanic department of the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in 1946. The present building was opened in 1974 and is situated in the immediate vicinity of the cathedral. It was built on the walls of a Roman villa which was discovered in 1941 and which contained the world-famous Dionysos mosaic.
The mediaeval Kaiserpfalz (imperial palace) also stood on this site. The museum houses the department of archaeological excavations and monuments of Cologne city council and fulfils three different functions as a centre of research, the archaeological archives of the City of Cologne and the public collection.
The presentation concept of the permanent exhibition has aroused international interest and has made the Römisch-Germanisches Museum one of the most popular museums in Germany.
The Roman mosaic with scenes from the world of Dionysos (around 220/230 A.D.) and the reconstructed tomb of the legionary Poblicius (around 40 A.D.) are probably the best known exhibits of the Römisch-Germanisches Museum in Cologne. The museum’s collection has profited from the archaeological legacy of Cologne and the surrounding region which spans a period from prehistoric times to the early Middle Ages. The worldwide largest collection of Roman glass vessels and a unique collection of Roman and early mediaeval jewellery are the highlights of this museum.
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