Kölnischer Kunstverein

The Kölnischer Kunstverein, founded in 1839, is one of the oldest and most renowned institutions in the Rhineland dedicated to the exhibition and mediation of contemporary art. The building, also known as "Die Brücke", is centrally located in the city centre and has been the headquarters of the Kölnischer Kunstverein since 2002.
Before that, it housed the former British Cultural Institute "British Council", from which the nickname derives, as it was a synonym for all British Information Centres in the former occupation zone, which all had the same goal: to build cultural bridges.

The current building was designed and constructed in 1949/50 by the renowned Cologne architect Wilhelm Riphan. Wilhelm Riphan, who played a leading role in the reconstruction of Cologne after the Second World War, had a major influence on the city's development. Many of the buildings that characterise Cologne's urban landscape, such as "the bridge", bear his signature.
In its early history, the Kölnischer Kunstverein often broke with the conventions of the traditional. By engaging with the different and unconventional currents of contemporary art, the exhibitions were sometimes groundbreaking for art history.
One example is the controversial and sensational Dada exhibition of 1919 as part of the "Cologne Dada Movement" with greats such as Heinrich Hoerle, Max Ernst and Hans Arp. Even during the National Socialist era, until 1944, the Kunstverein organised provocative exhibitions and showed works by Emil Nolde and August Macke, among others, which were degraded by the National Socialists as "degenerate art". In the 1970s, the exhibition "Happening and Fluxus", curated by Harald Szeemann and with contributions from artists such as Joseph Beuys, Otto Mühl and Hermann Nitsch, wrote art history.

In contrast to traditional museums, which present collections, and galleries, which market contemporary art, art associations primarily have a charitable mission. Their aim is to promote up-and-coming talents who want to establish themselves on the art market. For many years, the Kölnischer Kunstverein has been promoting a programme of studio grants for artists, while also offering the art-interested public the opportunity to engage with current trends in contemporary art through exhibitions, lectures, guided tours and educational trips. Even today, the Kölnischer Kunstverein continues to fulfil its purpose with exhibitions worth seeing on the central questions: "What is art actually and in which direction is it currently developing?"