Kolumba

About

The Kolumba Museum (formerly the Diocesan Museum) is an art museum in Cologne, Germany, run by the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Cologne. It is located at the historic site of the former St. Kolumba church, destroyed during World War II, and also includes the 1950 chapel "Madonna of the Ruins" by Gottfried Böhm.

The museum was founded by the Society for Christian Art in 1853, and taken over by the Archdiocese of Cologne in 1989.

Until 2007 it was located near Cologne Cathedral. Its new home, built from 2003 to 2007, was designed by Peter Zumthor and inaugurated by Joachim Meisner. The site was originally occupied by the romanesque Church of St. Kolumba, which was destroyed in World War II and replaced in 1950 by a Gottfried Böhm chapel nicknamed the "Madonna of the Ruins".

The new structure Peter Zumthor built for the museum now shares its site with the ruins of the Gothic church and the 1950s chapel, wrapping a perforated grey brick facade like a cloak around both, the museum and old church. The sixteen exhibition rooms possess varying qualities with regard to incoming daylight, size, proportion, and pathways. The work on the project yielded the following reduction: light gray brick walls (Kolumba stones) and clay plaster, flooring made of Jura limestone, terrazzo, and mortar, ceilings made of a poured mortar shell, window frames, doors, casings and fittings of steel, wall paneling and furniture of wood, textiles and leather, curtains of leather and silk.

Until 9 April 2007, the museum was located near the Cologne Cathedral at Roncalliplatz.

Atelier Zumthor won the architectural competition in 1997. Planning lasted until 2003, with the cornerstone laid on 1 October 2003 and the building consecrated on 15 September 2007 by Cardinal Meisner.

Architecturally, the new building reflects the concept of a "living museum". Zumthor implemented the juxtaposition of old and new by constructing on the original foundation and remains of St. Kolumba. The visible brickwork, specially fired for this project, harmonizes with the natural stone and brick masonry of the Romanesque church destroyed in World War II and the post-war concrete blocks. Thus, the museum architecture becomes part of the architectural continuum.

The interior is designed as a "museum of spiritual verticality". The exhibition spaces are illuminated by natural daylight; artificial lighting is avoided. Floor-to-ceiling glass panels create a seamless transition between inside and outside, reinforcing the idea of a "living museum" and an atmosphere of openness and limitlessness.

The new building incorporates both the foundations of the Romanesque church destroyed in World War II and the chapel "St. Kolumba (Cologne)|Madonna of the Ruins" built by Cologne architect Gottfried Böhm on the site. According to Ralf Gührer, the museum is based on a "unique concept" that is not intended as a model for other ecclesiastical museums. In the Kolumba concept, both the visitor and the artwork become subjects, as the museum provides the framework to "engage freely and leisurely with what Josef Pieper described as the human essence — the feast."

The museum comprises 16 exhibition rooms with differing dimensions, lighting conditions, and atmospheres. The spaces are characterized by natural lighting through floor-to-ceiling windows, subtle transitions, and a material palette of light grey plaster, Jura limestone floors, steel fixtures, and wood-leather furnishings. These elements contribute to what Zumthor called "spiritual verticality," inviting contemplation and slow engagement.

The ground floor houses the excavation site with a walkway across ancient foundations and includes the chapel as an integrated space. The upper floors present art in variably lit rooms. One highlight is the reading room with mahogany paneling and leather furnishings. A major conceptual element is the deliberate lack of signage and chronology, offering a "living museum" where artworks converse freely.

Kolumba's collection spans late antiquity to contemporary art. Highlights include:

- The 12th-century ivory crucifix (Romanesque Rhenish-Mosan tradition)

- The "Hermann-Ida Cross" (11th century)

- Stefan Lochner 's Madonna with the Violet

- Works by Paul Thek ("Shrine"), Jannis Kounellis, and Leiko Ikemura

- Medieval liturgical objects, Gothic tabernacles, and Radical Painting

- Post-1945 contemporary art by Joseph Beuys, Louise Bourgeois, Rebecca Horn, Roni Horn, Agnes Martin and others Exhibitions change annually on 14 September. The museum stages both old and new art in rotating constellations, often without labels, fostering personal discovery.

Zumthor's concept, articulated in his book "Atmospheres," aimed to create spaces that elicit emotion and depth. The Kolumba museum illustrates his principles: interplay of light and material, carefully composed acoustics, and inviting spatial sequences. Each visitor shapes their own experience through a curated but free-flowing layout.

- 2008: DAM Prize for Architecture in Germany