Media Kit Article: European Masters - The Städel Museum

The Städel Museum was founded in 1816 by the Frankfurt banker and merchant JohannFriedrich Städel who laid down in his testament ‐ in the spirit of the Enlightenment and its propagation of private patronage of the arts ‐ that his large collection of paintings and sculpture as well as his art library was to be continually opened to the public after his death.

In keeping with the wishes of its founder, this art institute was to encompass not only a collection to which the public would have access, but also a facility for the education of each new generation of artists – the present‐day Städelschule.

Since its foundation, the Städel Museum – which has also accommodated the collection of the Städtische Galerie (municipal gallery) since 1907 – has expanded its holdings continually by pursuing an active acquisition policy. The Städel Museum’s continually growing collection demands a substantial architectural expansion that will start in late 2009. This will increase the Städel’s exhibition space in 3000m². This modification will permit the masterworks of the Städel Museum for the first time to be presented in this integrity and complete ensemble outside the museum.

The collection presently comprises some 2,800 paintings, 600 sculptures and more than 100,000 drawings and prints. With its rich holdings, the Städel Museum presents an overview of seven hundred years of European art history – beginning with the early
fourteenth century and covering the Renaissance, the Baroque, Early Modern and
contemporary art.

Among the highlights of this comprehensive collection are works by Holbein the
Younger, Cranach the Elder, Dürer, Botticelli, Rembrandt, Vermeer, Degas, Matisse,
Monet, Renoir, Picasso, Kirchner, Beckmann, Klee, Bacon, Klein, Serra, Richter and
Kippenberger.

As Germany’s oldest and most important civil foundation dedicated to culture, the
Städel is moreover a prime example of the kind of broad‐based civil patronage that
contributes to the preservation and development of exceptional cultural institutions.

The National Gallery of Victoria is thrilled to be hosting one of the most important
collections in Europe in 2010.