Restituted Painting on Display from 9 September 2025 in the New Collection Presentation Faces and Narratives

It is a fortunate and highly satisfying outcome for all parties involved in the restitution of the work View across the Plain (1918) by Paul Adolf Seehaus: the new owner, Cologne-based entrepreneur Alexander Schorn, is making the gouache available to the Kunstmuseum Bonn as a permanent loan. Paul Adolf Seehaus (1891–1919) was the only pupil of August Macke and one of the most important artists of the Rhenish Expressionists. View across the Plain is among the artist’s most striking landscapes, reflecting both his stylistic closeness to Macke as well as his distinct artistic signature.

Alexander Schorn:
“I am absolutely delighted that the work is now returning to the outstanding collection of Rhenish Expressionists at the Kunstmuseum Bonn, where I first encountered it more than ten years ago. As an entrepreneur whose family business has specialised in the preservation and conservation of historic monuments for more than 125 years, I also see this as a contribution to restoring historical contexts. I am grateful to the Lempertz auction house and to Mrs Isabel Apiarius-Hanstein for establishing contact with the Kunstmuseum Bonn and supporting me in the loan process.”

Prof Dr Stephan Berg, Director of the Kunstmuseum Bonn:
“The Kunstmuseum Bonn’s collection is the natural habitat for works by Seehaus, and View across the Plain is a particularly fine example of the distinctive qualities of his style. Mr Schorn’s generous gesture is a wonderful example of how the balancing act between addressing injustice caused by Nazi-persecution-related dispossession of cultural property and at the same time ensuring continued public access can be achieved. We are deeply grateful to have found, in this way, a fair and just solution for the heirs of Marie Louise Koppel-Stadler, while also being able to continue our work with the piece within our collection.”

Whose voices are heard in the museum? What different perspectives do museum staff bring to a work of art?

Whether in the technical workshop, managing collection storage, or planning exhibitions: as museum employees, we all engage with art and develop personal connections to it that go beyond purely art-historical interpretations. These individual perspectives take center stage here. In the middle of the room, selected works from the collection are displayed, each linked to specific stories and memories.

The presentation changes regularly in order to constantly focus on new perspectives. The final chapter of the ‘Transparent Museum’ is dedicated to our museum attendants. Four colleagues speak about complex art installations, encounters with artists, and their responsibility towards our artworks and visitors.

To the Digital Guide

Over the past few months, the Kunstmuseum Bonn has been fitted with a new lighting system that is more energy-efficient in terms of sustainability and can be easily adapted to conservation requirements. In the course of the renovation, room blocks were gradually closed and then reopened with new room-filling installations.
The entire collection presentation is now on display again, including new room installations by Ulla von Brandenburg, Thomas Demand, Dominique Gonzalez-Foerster, Tomás Saraceno and others, as well as other newly designed rooms featuring works by several artists.

Refugees who can prove their status as a refugee by means of a document issued by the immigration authorities will be admitted free of charge.

Every Sunday from 11:15 a.m. – 1:15 p.m. our Atelier am Sonntag takes place – for guests of all ages, with support and assistance needs, with and without art experience. Refugees are welcome to participate in these workshops free of charge. The number of participants is limited, participation tickets can be picked up at the museum counter before the events starts. All dates of the Atelier am Sonntag can be found in our calendar.