Kunstsammlungen am Theaterplatz

In the location's words:

Today, the art collections on Theaterplatz are among the most important civic museums in Germany and unite all genres of art - from painting and sculpture to graphic art and arts and crafts. There is a particular focus on expressionism, textile art and contemporary art.

Particularly noteworthy are the collections of Romanticism and Expressionism with works by the "Brücke" artists, including an important collection by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff, who was born in Chemnitz and grew up here together with Ernst Ludwig Kirchner and Erich Heckel. From these and other artists

such as Caspar David Friedrich, Max Slevogt, Lovis Corinth, Helene Funke, Louise Seidler, Edvard Munch and Georg Baselitz, the collection contains outstanding works.

In the sculpture collection, works by Edgar Degas, Aristide Maillol and Tony Cragg are among the highlights. The Graphic Arts Collection comprises around 28,000 works on paper with outstanding holdings by Lyonel Feininger, Honoré Daumier, Käthe Kollwitz and Wolfgang Mattheuer. The decorative arts and textile collections are also of particular value. The art history library of the art collections, which is open to the public, comprises more than 90,000 volumes.

A special treasure is the archive of the complete estate of Carlfriedrich Claus, a representative of the international art movement of "Second Modernism" from the 1960s onwards. The archive contains his language sheets and sound art works as well as works by artists

from his circle, manuscripts, diaries, correspondence, photographs and his personal library.

The collection exhibitions offer a comprehensive overview of Romantic and 19th century painting and sculpture, masterpieces of classical modernism - especially by Karl Schmidt-Rottluff - and Expressionism, as well as abstract art after 1945. In addition to maintaining and presenting the collection, a wide range of special exhibitions contribute to the museum's reputation.