Abteiberg Museum, Art museum and sculpture garden in Mönchengladbach, Germany
Abteiberg Museum is an art museum with an integrated sculpture garden in Mönchengladbach that presents modern and contemporary works. The building features postmodern architecture with exhibition spaces spread across multiple interconnected levels of varying heights.
The collection was catalogued systematically from 1901 and first shown in the city hall; in 1904 it moved into its first dedicated building, a former Protestant school on the Fliescherberg. The 1902-founded museum association backed its growth. After stations in the Karl-Brandts-Haus and the Oskar-Kühlen-Haus, Hans Hollein's new building opened on the Abteistraße in 1982 after ten years of planning and construction.
The museum's name refers to the Abteiberg, the hill next to Gladbach Minster where it stands, a minute from the Old Market. Its collecting began with a town-history collection assembled from 1887, and the 1902 museums association supported its growth. Since Johannes Cladders' directorship (1967–1985) it has been known for experimental exhibitions; in 2016 the German AICA section named it Museum of the Year.
The museum sits at Abteistraße 27 and is easily reachable on foot with ample time needed to explore all spaces. The interconnected levels require some attention when navigating, so plan your visit without rushing through the building.
In 2009 the artist Gregor Schneider cut a temporary entrance into the museum: an inconspicuous garage beside the museum car park. He had already made a tunnel-like approach in 2008. Visitors who know where to look can spot this plain garage door, easy to mistake for a service entrance.
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