Museum Katharinenhof Kranenburg

About the museum

The museum goes back to the Kranenburger Verein für Heimatschutz, a heritage association founded in 1922, which acquired the remains of an old windmill and set up a local history museum in the rebuilt mill tower. After heavy losses in World War II, it was rebuilt in the 1950s; because the tower became too small, the former Katharinenstift in the village center came into consideration as a museum building.

With a donation from the publisher and collector Kasimir Hagen and religious artworks from the parish of St. Peter und Paul, the Katharinenhof opened on May 3, 1961, initially as a pilgrimage museum. The van der Grinten brothers, collectors and early supporters of Joseph Beuys, also showed modern art there from the start. From 1970 the religious folk art was moved to the mill tower, and the Katharinenhof developed into an art museum with regular temporary exhibitions that, under the influence of Hans van der Grinten, became known far beyond the region.

Today the ensemble comprises three listed sites: the Katharinenhof, the mill tower with an exhibition on local history (since 2006) and an 18th-century town barn with old crafts and agricultural equipment (since 2002). From 1990 to 1995 the adjacent Bürgerhaus temporarily housed the Joseph Beuys archive.

Due to the conversion of the Bürgerhaus, the museum was closed for an extended period from 2023; during this time the association, registered since 2025 as the Kranenburger Verein für Kunst und Geschichte, showed exhibitions in the project space and in converted transformer towers. Since May 2026 the Katharinenhof has been gradually reopening.

Highlights

• Collection ranging from medieval sacred art to the fin de siècle, including works by Eduard von Gebhardt
• Contemporary art with close ties to the Netherlands
• Collection of religious folk art and devotional objects from the 18th to the 20th century
• Exhibitions in converted transformer towers, viewable from outside around the clock
• Connection to the van der Grinten collector family and to Joseph Beuys

Permanent exhibitions

• Dauerausstellung: Ältere Sammlung – On the first floor of the Katharinenhof, works ranging from medieval sacred art and Renaissance painting to the fin de siècle, with a focus on Eduard von Gebhardt. Because of the gradual reopening, not all rooms are accessible.

Founded

1961

Operated by

Kranenburger Verein für Kunst und Geschichte 1922 e. V.

Admission & discounts

To celebrate the reopening, admission is free until the end of December 2026; the listed prices apply from January 2027. Members of the association and of the NRW-Stiftung friends' association get in free.

Accessibility

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

Kids & families

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

Getting there & parking

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

Amenities & dining

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

Events & venue rental

As far as we know, the museum does not rent out spaces for external events.

The vaulted cellar of the Katharinenhof and the foyer of the mill tower are normally used for weddings, celebrations and Niederrheinische Kaffeetafeln (traditional Lower Rhine coffee tables); due to renovation and conversion, no events are currently held there.

Plan your visit