Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst

Current exhibitions

About the museum

The museum traces its origins to the collector Adolf Fischer and his wife Frieda, who handed over their holdings of East Asian art to the city of Cologne by foundation agreement in 1909 and then continued to make targeted acquisitions on journeys through Japan and China. In 1913 the museum opened as the first in Europe dedicated specifically to East Asian art. The founders wanted to present the works not as ethnographic specimens but as art on an equal footing with that of Europe.

The first museum building was destroyed in World War II, and around 760 objects were lost to war and theft. Until 1977 the museum showed its collection in a series of temporary venues, including the Overstolzenhaus, the Hahnentorburg city gate, and the Kunsthalle.

In 1977 it moved into the new building on the Aachener Weiher, designed by the Japanese architect Kunio Maekawa, a former student of Le Corbusier. Its cubic volumes, clad in tiles fired in Japan, are grouped around a meditation garden created by Masayuki Nagare. Since the 1970s the collection has grown to include Chinese ritual bronzes, early ceramics, and calligraphy, as well as long-term loans from the Peter und Irene Ludwig Stiftung. Today it is considered, alongside Berlin's Museum für Asiatische Kunst, the most important collection of its kind in Germany. In a 2023 break-in, nine imperial porcelains from the founding collection were stolen.

Highlights

• Buddhist painting and sculpture, including a Jizō Bosatsu by the sculptor Kōen from 1249
• Japanese folding screens such as the Gion Festival screen from the Edo period
• Korean celadon ceramics from the Goryeo period
• Chinese ritual bronzes and calligraphy, for example by Mi Fu
• Museum building by Kunio Maekawa with a Japanese inner garden by Masayuki Nagare
• Bronze sculpture "Usagi Kannon" by Leiko Ikemura in the foyer

Permanent exhibitions

• Sammlung: Kunst aus China, Korea und Japan – Galleries on China, Korea, and Japan with painting, sculpture, ceramics, lacquer, and bronzes from the Fischer foundation and later acquisitions.

Founded

1913

Operated by

Stadt Köln

Director

Shao-Lan Hertel (wissenschaftliche Direktorin), Anne Fischer (geschäftsführende Direktorin)

Admission & discounts

Free admission: KölnTag (Cologne Day) on the first Thursday of the month (except public holidays): free admission for Cologne residents with proof of residence

Free admission also for KölnPass holders and for Cologne residents on their birthday.

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The museum describes itself as accessible, but the foyer can currently be reached step-free only with help from staff (call ahead: 0221 221-28608). The exhibition area is on one level; two loaner wheelchairs, an accessible restroom, and accessible parking are available. Occasional workshops for people with visual impairments via the Museumsdienst Köln.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Kids’ birthday parties

Children's and family tours (from age 5 or 8 depending on the date, plus programs for parents with babies) and children's workshops for ages 6 to 13, for example stamp printing with written characters or origami, via the Museumsdienst Köln; children's birthday parties (approx. 2.5 hours).

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Café
• Restaurant: not available
• Museum shop

Café UME with a terrace and Asian-inspired fusion cuisine (since April 2026; Tue–Sun 10:00–17:00, May–September Sat/Sun until 20:00, on the first Thursday of the month until 22:00). Museum shop with books, crafts, and exhibition merchandise. Reference library on East Asian art by appointment.

Events & venue rental

No information on venue rental found on the museum website.

Plan your visit