NRW Forum, Art museum and event venue in Pempelfort, Düsseldorf, Germany
The NRW Forum is an art museum and event venue within the Ehrenhof complex in Düsseldorf, focused on contemporary photography and digital culture. It spreads across multiple gallery spaces where rotating exhibitions are displayed, complemented by a restaurant and various event areas.
The building was erected in 1925–26 by Wilhelm Kreis as part of the Ehrenhof for the GeSoLei exhibition, and from 23 June 1928 housed the Reichsmuseum für Gesellschafts- und Wirtschaftskunde. From 1951 to the early 1990s it held the Landesmuseum Volk und Wirtschaft, whose walk-in coal mine was its main attraction. After full renovation it reopened on 9 October 1998 as the NRW Forum Kultur und Wirtschaft; in January 2020 it joined the Museum Kunstpalast.
The building began as the Reichsmuseum für Gesellschafts- und Wirtschaftskunde, opened on 23 June 1928 with Oskar von Miller, founder of the Deutsches Museum, involved in its concept. From 1951 a walk-in coal mine in the basement drew visitors to the Landesmuseum Volk und Wirtschaft. Today the house shows photography, pop and digital culture, including the 2015 exhibition "Ego Update" on digital identity.
The building sits in the Ehrenhof ensemble north of the Altstadt, between the Rhine and the Hofgarten, next to the Tonhalle, Kunstpalast and Rheinterrasse. The NRW Forum is reached on foot from the Altstadt and is served by Düsseldorf's trams and buses; the nearest stops are around the Ehrenhof. Exhibitions, festivals and workshops share the house, so check what is on before crossing town.
The building housed a walk-in coal mine in its basement when it served as the Landesmuseum Volk und Wirtschaft from 1951 into the 1990s; this underground gallery was the museum's main attraction. Since 2020 the house has been part of the Museum Kunstpalast foundation, with Alain Bieber as artistic director.
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