history | PAINTING MFA Alfred/Düsseldorf

Being in Europe means easy train access to many different cities! Last weekend, members of the MFA painting cohort took a voluntary trip to Munich in Bavaria, Germany, for a quick getaway.

From visiting historic beer gardens to sampling the city’s vibrant cuisine, the group fully immersed themselves in Munich’s rich cultural offerings. They arrived on Friday, March 21, for a quick overnight visit, staying in a beautiful Jugendstil (Art Nouveau) apartment just off Prinzregentenplatz in the heart of the theater district. Their first stop was a beer garden near the Chinesischen Turm (Chinese Tower), where they enjoyed hearty Bavarian fare. A leisurely stroll through the Englischer Garten followed, where they befriended some curious ducks, geese, and loons. The weather was perfectly mild, ideal for a Spaziergang—the German word for the art of taking a stroll. Later that evening, they attended a concert at Muffathalle, getting a taste of Munich’s nightlife.

The next day was dedicated entirely to museum visits. The group spent the day exploring Munich’s Museum District, taking advantage of the conveniently clustered world-renowned institutions. They began at the Alte Pinakothek, home to an impressive collection of Old Master paintings, before heading to the contemporary-focused Museum Brandhorst. A major highlight was the museum’s extensive Cy Twombly collection, one of the largest in the world. The entire upper floor was dedicated to his work, featuring both his 2009 Roses series and the monumental Lepanto cycle (2001), displayed in a gallery designed specifically for it. Twombly’s loose, expressive scribbles and poetic inscriptions provided a striking contrast to the grandeur of Rubens and Dürer at the Alte Pinakothek, offering a dynamic balance between the medieval and the contemporary—two sides of the same city.

As the sun set over Munich, the museum squares filled with locals enjoying the golden hour—drinking Weissbier, playing volleyball, and lounging on the grass. On the train ride home, the group couldn’t shake the feeling that one weekend wasn’t quite enough. Munich had more to offer, and they chose to think of this trip not as a farewell, but as a “To Be Continued.”

📸 Erin Keating

On Thursday, February 20, 2025, the Alfred MFA painting cohort visited the Kunstmuseum Gelsenkirchen in Gelsenkirchen to meet with Julia Höner, the museum director, and be guided on a private tour. The building itself was architecturally unique, built in 1984. The museum director stated that the entryway was meant to deliver “breath and space to invite people in, to be a space for the public.”

We were guided from room to room, and the director provided insight into the works currently on view. The Kunstmuseum Gelsenkirchen holds one of the largest collections of kinetic art in Europe. The exhibitions were designed so that visitors could activate the works themselves, by pressing buttons stationed next to the works, designed to set the art in motion. Such a structure of art exhibition provides a veritable process of discovery. This interaction with the art makes for a playful experience, one that all age groups can enjoy. Educational programming is strong within the museum, often hosting pre-school and elementary school children, who may be having their first interactions with an art institution.

This engagement with young people is not by accident. The kinetic art on view, a large portion made directly after WWII, was made as art that hoped to rid itself of representation, and away from political means, which would often be in service of government propaganda, The artists making this kinetic work, some the artist group ZERO, had the idea of, in the director’s words, “pushing the art down from its pedestal to become more accessible for the people.” There are a select number of works that the museum encourages its visitors to touch, which in turn impacts the aesthetics of the work.

At the end of the tour, our group visited the basement of the museum – an area converted from storage of kinetic art, into an exhibition space – to see and interact with the work of Alona Rodeh, and their solo exhibition interzone.

📸 Max Heaton

A Weekend in Munich

Kunstmuseum Gelsenkirchen