Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst

The Museum of East Asian Art in Cologne houses Chinese, Korean and Japanese art. It was founded in 1913 and was the first museum of its kind in Germany. The core of the permanent collection is the Japanese collection of the founder of the museum Adolf Fischer (1857-1914) and his wife Frieda Bartdorff (1874-1945). Their collection which includes Buddhist painting and wood sculpture, Japanese screen painting, colour wood prints and lacquer work is regarded as one of the most important collections in Europe. Other focal points of the permanent collection are religious bronze objects from China, and Chinese, Korean and Japanese ceramics, above all Korean celadon objects of the Koryo dynasty from the 10th to the 14th century with their unique glaze. The museum's collection of lacquer work and screens are also of international standing.

Among the most important donations of the post-war period is the gift of Chinese cult objects in bronze and traditional furniture from the collection of Hans-Jürgen von Lochow. Another highlight is the Hans Wilhelm Siegel (1903-1997) collection of Chinese ceramics which was bought by the museum. Exquisite Chinese Buddhist sculpture, bronze objects and ceramics from the Tang period were added in the 90s by acquisitions made by the Orientstiftung (orient foundation) and the Fördererkreis (friends) and loans made by Peter and Irene Ludwig. Chinese and Japanese calligraphy are well represented thanks to the acquisition of the calligraphic collection of Heinz Götze (1912-2001).

The museum building was opened in 1977 and underlines the cultural importance of the collection. It was designed by Kunio Maekawa (1905-1986) who was a pupil of Le Corbusier. Its severe, transparently structured cubes take up old Japanese traditions and at the same time develop a new and modern iconography. The complex is centred round a landscaped garden in the tradition of Japanese gardens of meditation created by the Japanese sculptor Masayuke Nagare (born 1923). This symbiosis of Japanese architecture and garden design together with the presentation of oriental art gives this Cologne museum a well-defined, unmistakable identity. In keeping with the concept of the founder of the museum, Adolf Fischer, the exhibits are not presented as documents of cultural history but as autonomous works of art which illustrate specific styles of a period or individual artist. Fischer's open approach eschewing pre-conceived notions has since been confirmed again and again by research in the field of oriental art history. Although the exhibition area has been expanded, a large proportion of the collection cannot be exhibited and so the presentation is changed several times a year. In addition, there are regular themed exhibitions with exhibits from the permanent collection.