The SCHIRN KUNSTHALLE FRANKFURT is one of most important exhibition venues in Europe. Since opening in 1986, it has presented more than 270 exhibitions on around 2,000 m² of floor space and can boast a total of more than 10 million visitors. The SCHIRN focuses on art-historical and historico-cultural themes, discourses, and trends from a contemporary perspective. Its range of offers is multifaceted, international, and progressive; it attempts to open up new points of view and to break open traditional patterns of reception. The exhibitions are devoted in equal measure to contemporary stances in art and art of the modern era. 

The SCHIRN pushes space- and time-related boundaries, time and again rethinks things, extends the exhibition space to include the Internet, and provides exhaustive WIFI and progressive digital communication offers free of charge. As one of the most outstanding art institutions in all of Europe, it has also been a constant in Frankfurt’s cultural life, a place were interested citizens, patrons and partners, young or established artists, committed friends, as well as people from throughout the world come together. The SCHIRN is not a temporary museum—not in terms of its content-related orientation, presentation design, or its art-historical approach. As an institution without a collection it is the SCHIRN's responsibility to develop well-founded suggestions from a contemporary perspective. This promotes a discourse that can be taken up again by museums.

The SCHIRN KUNSTHALLE FRANKFURT was built at the edge of the historical path between the Römer and the cathedral that future emperors ceremoniously paced down on their way to their coronation in the Middle Ages. Butchers sold their goods here at open stands, so-called “schrannen” or “schirnen”, to which the SCHIRN owes its name. After World War II and the destruction of the historical city in center 1944, the ensemble had disappeared. The area lay fallow for nearly forty years until the SCHIRN complex, which was designed by the architects Bangert, Jansen, Scholz & Schultes, filled the vacant lot between the Römer and the cathedral. It is 140 meters long and only 10 meters wide and tall.

The foyer of the SCHIRN is characterized by luminous walls that immerse the space in alternating colors with the aid of RGB technology. Along with other modernization measures, this design was developed in 2002 in collaboration with the architectural office Kuehn Malvezzi in Berlin. The luminous walls and the exhibition lighting were converted to LED in 2016 subject to current climate protection requirements and thus meet the newest standards.

OPENING OF THE SCHIRN

The opening of the Kunsthalle coincided with a fertile period in terms of cultural policy. “Culture for everyone” was the motto of Hilmar Hoffmann, who had a formative influence on the city’s cultural life from 1970 to 1990 as its head of cultural affairs. The foundation of the Museumsufer and the SCHIRN was a result of his enthusiasm and creative drive. The latter was initiated for the purpose of also being able to present “major exhibitions” in Frankfurt. The SCHIRN’s founding director, Christoph Vitali, who served from 1986 to 1994, quickly understood to focus this vague purpose, which was as open to interpretation as it was malleable. From the very beginning, Vitali presented an extraordinary program radiating far beyond the city. From 1994 to 2001, Hellmut Seemann, Christoph Vitali’s successor, demonstrated how to maintain the Kunsthalle’s independence in an economically difficult situation.

VIVID INSTITUTION

As a civic institution, the SCHIRN can rely on its contracting entity, the City of Frankfurt, which continuously supports its activities and provides it with a secure perspective for the future. Nevertheless, a program of such wealth, quality, and vibrancy cannot be kept alive without the support of corporate partners, non-profit foundations, and the members of the “FRIENDS of the SCHIRN KUNSTHALLE.” The dynamic synergy between the City of Frankfurt, the institution’s numerous sponsors, patrons, and supporters, as well as its many partners from a wide variety of sectors make it possible for the Schirn to realize its exhibitions with outstanding loans from throughout the world. Without the considerable trust and the exceptional collaboration with artists, representatives of a globally networked museum landscape, collectors, and gallerists, the SCHIRN would not be what is it today—a highly active and lively institution with a clear-cut cultural and educational mission for the future. 

Follow the curators of the SCHIRN on their travels through the art world and look over their shoulder while they are planning new exhibitions and meet up with artists.