Herkomer Museum

About the museum

Landsberg has cherished the memory of Hubert von Herkomer (1849–1914), whose family emigrated via America to England, where he became famous as a portrait painter and illustrator, for almost a hundred years. As early as 1926, the town set up a Herkomer room in the town hall with prints and paintings. In 1929, his widow Margaret and the town founded the Herkomerstiftung (Herkomer Foundation), to which she transferred buildings, artworks and numerous personal belongings.

Since 1987 the museum has been located in the family's former residence on the Lech, on a site where a paper mill once stood. Its defining feature is the Mutterturm, a Historicist building connected to the museum building by a wooden walkway and showing influences of the Arts and Crafts movement. From 2012, the entire ensemble was renovated and redesigned for around 1.4 million euros; the museum reopened in October 2015.

The permanent exhibition "A man of many parts" tells in themed rooms of the family's origins, of the rise to a sought-after society portraitist and of Herkomer's connection to Bavaria. It also shows him as a film pioneer and promoter of the automobile. The tower with its original furnishings is part of the tour. The museum is an institution of the Herkomerstiftung and is administered by the town of Landsberg am Lech.

Highlights

• Walk-in Mutterturm with original furnishings
• Permanent exhibition "A man of many parts" on Herkomer's life and work
• Portrait painting, prints, film and the automobile
• Free audio guide in German, English and Italian
• Located in the park on the Lech designed by Herkomer, with a café

Permanent exhibitions

• A man of many parts – Biographical show about Hubert von Herkomer in several themed rooms – from the family's emigration to success as a portrait painter in England. The tour includes the walk-in Mutterturm.

Operated by

Herkomerstiftung Landsberg, verwaltet durch die Stadt Landsberg am Lech

Director

Sonia Schätz

Admission & discounts

Audio guide included in admission. Free admission also for school classes with a chaperone (without a tour), members of visual artists' associations, ICOM members and members of the Freundeskreis der städtischen Museen Landsberg (friends of the municipal museums).

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: not available
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials
• Audio description: no information

Entrance, reception, shop and coat check can be reached without steps, an elevator leads to the threshold-free exhibition rooms; accessible restroom on the first floor. The left park path leads to the museum without steps. The Mutterturm is not wheelchair-accessible because of its spiral staircases, but can be viewed virtually at a media station that can be rolled under. Folding stools with a stand-up aid are available. For blind and visually impaired guests, a companion is recommended. Language-learning tour in plain language.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Activity booklet, scavenger hunt or kids’ audio guide

Audio guide quiz for children and teenagers in the museum park, tours for kindergartens and school classes, and hands-on craft instructions on the children's page of the website. Children up to age 14 have free admission.

Getting there & parking

By car from the A96/B17 via the Landsberg-West exit toward the old town to the parking lot at the Papierfleck; at the end of the parking lot is the park with the museum.

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Museum shop
• Coat check

Café Herkomer in the park (Tuesday to Sunday 09:00–18:30, closed Mondays) with terrace; museum shop with publications, children's books and souvenirs.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.

Plan your visit