Hamburger Bahnhof - Museum for Contemporary Art

The Hamburger Bahnhof Museum for Contemporary Art is Berlin’s most important exhibition space dedicated exclusively to art from the 1950s to the present.

With the opening of the museum inside the Hamburger Bahnhof in November 1996, the National Gallery gained a permanent exhibition space for contemporary art. Its constantly changing exhibition program makes the Museum for Contemporary Art (German: Museum für Gegenwart) an exciting destination for art lovers in the capital. The Hamburger Bahnhof is the largest building of the National Gallery and impresses visitors with its huge exhibitions space.

From Terminal Station to Modern Museum

The Hamburger Bahnhof used to be a terminal station, which was finally closed in 1884 after only 38 years of operation. Today, it is the only surviving station building from the second half of the 19th century in Berlin. Soon after the station's closure, the late classicist building started to serve as an exhibition space: Starting in 1904, it housed the Museum of Transport and Construction. During World War II, the building was severely damaged and remained unused until 1984. Since its reopening in 1996, the Hamburger Bahnhof has built its reputation as one of the world’s most highly-regarded contemporary art museums.

Exhibitions at Hamburger Bahnhof

The Museum for Contemporary Art inside Hamburger Bahnhof shows art from the second half of the century onwards on an exhibition area of around 10,000 square meters. In terms of time period, the exhibitions tie in with the works of the Neue Nationalgalerie and include paintings, sculptures, object art, photography as well as video and film art. Since the Hamburger Bahnhof is part of the National Gallery, its collection consists largely of exhibits from the Berlin State Museums. In addition, works from three important collections have been added over the years: the Marx Collection, the Marzona Collection and the Friedrich Christian Flick Collection.

Warhol, Lichtenstein and Beuys: Highlights at Hamburger Bahnhof

The basis of the Marx Collection is made of works by world-famous artists such as Andy Warhol, Cy Twombly, Robert Rauschenberg, Roy Lichtenstein, Anselm Kiefer, and Joseph Beuys. The Marzona Collection focuses on Land Art and Minimal Art. It includes over 600 works by artists such as Charlotte Posenenske, Sol LeWitt, and Mario Merz, among others. The Friedrich Christian Flick Collection comprises around 1500 works that have been made available to the National Gallery on permanent loan. Among them are treasures by Alberto Giacometti, Georg Baselitz, Gerhard Richter and Nam June Paik.

Address, Opening Hours and Contact Information

• Address:
  Invalidenstr. 50
  10557 Berlin
  City map
• Phone: [phone]
• Opening Hours: Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 10 AM to 6 PM, Thursday 10 AM to 8 PM, Saturday and Sunday 11 AM to 6 PM
• Accessibility: The museum is fully wheelchair accessible
• Admission Fee:
  €14, reduced €7, free every first Thuraday of the month between from 4 to 8 PM
• Tickets: Book Tickets