Municipal art museum in Witten with a large collection of German Informel and Expressionism, plus exhibitions of contemporary art.
October 17, 2026 – March 24, 2027
Four Black artistic positions – Black Archive Germany with Benedicta Bibuku, Ethel Tawe, Noemi Weber and the Maktaba Room reading room – ask how one can stay in an art scene that often does not welcome you.
The museum's roots go back to 1886, when the Verein für Orts- und Heimatkunde in der Grafschaft Mark (local history society of the County of Mark) was founded in Witten and began collecting objects of local history – including a 13th-century wooden figure of Archbishop Engelbert of Berg, a Baroque tomb and an extensive coin collection. A dedicated museum building was built between 1909 and 1911, its floor plan reminiscent of a three-aisled church; it opened on October 5, 1911, was partly destroyed in World War II and reopened in 1952. The City of Witten has run the museum since 1944.
Under Wilhelm Nettmann, who directed the museum from 1953 to 1978, temporary exhibitions of contemporary art became its trademark, and many works entered the collection through purchases from exhibitions. Today the collection comprises well over 5,000 works and is considered one of the largest collections of German Informel, with works by artists such as K. O. Götz, Emil Schumacher, Fred Thieler and Gerhard Hoehme, as well as the groups ZEN 49, junger westen and ZERO. The art collection began with Expressionism, represented by Kirchner, Nolde, Pechstein, Heckel and Münter, among others, and by Westphalian artists such as Wilhelm Morgner and Christian Rohlfs.
From 1985 to 1988 the museum received an extension. There is no permanent display of the collection: selections from the holdings are shown in changing exhibitions, often in dialogue with contemporary art. Thanks to the friends' association and the Kunstverein (art association), admission is free.
Admission is free.
Free admission for everyone, made possible by the Förderverein Märkisches Museum Witten e.V. (friends' association) and the Kunstverein Witten e.V.; public guided tours are also free.
According to the museum, generally accessible; elevators serve all floors. Wheelchairs are not available to borrow.
Great for kids & families
Free workshops for children aged 6 and up and families almost every Saturday (Junges Museum Witten); plus craft videos and coloring templates online.
Saalbau
Bus 320, 375, 376, and NE18 to "Saalbau" or 320, 375, 378, and 379 to "Husemannstraße", each a few minutes on foot; Witten Hbf about a 10-minute walk.
Parking available
Small free visitor parking lot behind the building housing the museum and library; additional paid spaces at the Saalbau (Bergerstraße 25), about a 5-minute walk from there.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
The museum hasn’t published any information on this – please ask the museum directly.
| Guided tours | yes |
|---|---|
| School programs | yes |
| Good to know | Free public guided tour on Sundays at 15:00 (approx. 60 minutes, no registration required, meeting point in the foyer), once a month as the conversation format “Let’s talk about art.” The collection has no permanent display and can only be seen in selections within the changing exhibitions. |
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