Your Visit
NEWS
Our Programme Brochure
with all information on special exhibitions, guided tours & workshops, important dates and museum news – download as a PDF here and view.
On Museum Day – every first Sunday of the month – adults enjoy free admission to the permanent collections and reduced admission to special exhibitions. Children and young people up to the age of 18 always have free admission.
Hui Chen Yun, Die Vermessung der Einsamkeit, 2023/2024, verkohltes Holz, Holzrahmen, Digitaldruck, variable Größe, Ausstellungsansicht © Hui Chen Yun PRESS RELEASE
Outstanding Art at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum: Art Prizes 2025 Honour Local Artists
I As part of the special exhibition HIER & JETZT – Kunst aus Hamm und Westfalen ("HERE & NOW – Art from Hamm and Westphalia"), four artists and two art educators were presented with awards at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum on 17 January. Their impressive works and compelling concepts range from profound explorations of social issues to innovative approaches to art mediation.
| The Exhibition |
HIER & JETZT – Kunst aus Hamm und Westfalen ("HERE & NOW – Art from Hamm and Westphalia")
18 October 2024 – 19 January 2025 | South Wing
The major survey exhibition ran for three months, drawing numerous visitors to the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum. For the seventh time, the popular exhibition presented current art from Hamm and the Westphalia region, with 57 artists selected by a specialist jury. The breadth of techniques on display was impressive, ranging from watercolour and oil painting to sculpture and large-scale installation. Classical approaches such as reverse glass painting appeared alongside modern imaging methods. Printed textiles were placed opposite delicate drawings. Geometric structures and abstract compositions formed another focal point. However contrasting the individual forms of expression may be, they are a reflection of the time and the region in which they were created.
With this edition, HIER & JETZT once again demonstrated that the Westphalian art scene is alive and diverse. It not only made clear what is currently happening in the many studios, but offered visitors a nuanced window into the world of ideas of the artists working here.
| The Prizes & Prize Winners
| The Kunstpreis der Stadt Hamm 2025, worth €5,000, goes to Münster-based artist Hui Chen Yun (*1985). The Audience Prize goes to Hamm artist Jutta Elbers (*1967). The jury also awards commendations to artists Tamara Malcher (*1995) and Ute Hoeschen (*1940). In addition, art educators Linn Gesche Küsters (*1992) and Jeannette Schultz (*1974) are honoured with the Preis für Kunstvermittlung der Stadt Hamm (City of Hamm Award for Art Education).
| Prize Winner: Hui Chen Yun
Hui Chen Yun, born 1985 in Taiwan, lives and works in Münster. She studied Fine Art at the National Taiwan University in Taipei and continued her training in the class of painting professor Suchan Kinoshita at the Kunstakademie Münster – Hochschule für bildende Künste, where she worked as a master student under Kinoshita. Her works have been presented in numerous national and international exhibitions, including the exhibition for the Kunstpreis der NRW Bank in Düsseldorf (2019). In 2019 she also received a DAAD scholarship to support her artistic practice.
| Awarded Work: "Die Vermessung der Einsamkeit" ("The Measurement of Loneliness") (2023/2024)
Yun's work is characterised by an intense engagement with philosophical and social questions. The jury was particularly convinced by her site-specific installation „Die Vermessung der Einsamkeit" ("The Measurement of Loneliness") (2023/2024), which uses simple but profound means to explore the complexity of human relationships.
The installation consists of two charred wooden beams traversing the space past each other. The wooden elements, made specifically for the exhibition site, appear to strive towards each other like stalactites and stalagmites – yet without touching, a poetic image of the unreachable closeness between people. An accompanying text excerpt from Friedrich Nietzsche's „Also sprach Zarathustra" ("Thus Spoke Zarathustra", 1883) deepens the philosophical dimension of the work, prompting reflection on loneliness, alienation and human existence. With this work, Hui Chen Yun has created an intense, meditative engagement with the human psyche and the challenges of contemporary society. With minimalist means, Yun manages to address the multifaceted dimensions of human relationships and touch on existential questions.
The prize is generously sponsored by the Stiftung der Sparkasse Hamm für Kunst- und Kulturpflege (Sparkasse Hamm Foundation for Art and Cultural Preservation).
PRESS RELEASE
Obituary
Farewell | Dr. Ellen Schwinzer (1947 Bamberg – 2024 Hamm)
The Gustav-Lübcke-Museum bids farewell with great sadness to Dr. Ellen Schwinzer (1947–2024). As a dedicated and long-serving director of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum in Hamm, she left a lasting mark on the museum and on the cultural landscape of the city.
After studying Classical Archaeology, Art History and Ancient History, Ellen Schwinzer received her doctorate in Archaeology in 1978 from Julius-Maximilians-Universität Würzburg, and worked from 1976 to 1978 as a trainee at the Badisches Landesmuseum Karlsruhe and as a research assistant at the Römisch-Germanische Kommission of the Deutsches Archäologisches Institut. From 1978 she worked in museum education at Museum Schloss Rheydt in Mönchengladbach. In 1987 she was appointed curator and joined the museum in Hamm in 1988, where she was promoted to senior curator in 1989. In the late 1980s she became the first woman to take the helm of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum. Her deep knowledge and passion for cultural history quickly made her a central figure at the institution: with dedication and foresight she served as director until her retirement in 2012.
Under her leadership the museum underwent an impressive programme of expansion and modernisation that established the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum as a cultural destination well beyond the city limits. In the new building completed in 1993 on Neue Bahnhofstraße, she played a key role in redesigning and expanding the permanent collection. The collection of post-1945 art was systematically built up – including works from the artist group „junger westen" and from postwar painting (German Informel) – alongside a further focus on painting of the 1980s and 1990s. With the support of the engaged Museumsverein, important works and contemporary art were acquired for the post-1945 collection, including the triptych „Sebastianlegende" ("Legend of Saint Sebastian") by Gerhard Hoehme, the painting „Straße Camus I" ("Road Camus I") by Hans Kaiser, and „Spannungen" ("Tensions") by Fritz Winter. Also notable is the coffin of Sat-Sobek, donated to the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum by the Museumsverein for the 1993 reopening – to this day a central object in the museum's Egyptian collection.
Ellen Schwinzer also succeeded in establishing the museum as a destination for the entire region through a varied and ambitious exhibition programme. Exhibitions such as „Paul Klee – Reise in den Süden" ("Paul Klee – Journey to the South", 1997), „Gärten und Höfe der Rubenszeit im Spiegel der Malerfamilie Brueghel und der Künstler um Peter Paul Rubens" ("Gardens and Courtyards of the Rubens Era", 2001) and "Das Bauhaus und die Esoterik" ("The Bauhaus and the Esoteric", 2005) remain in the memory of visitors to this day.
Ellen Schwinzer's legacy was defined not only by her professional expertise, but equally by her strong commitment to art education. She championed museum pedagogy with great passion and realised numerous cultural education projects aimed in particular at children and young people. Involving the wider community was also central to her work: the Artothek at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum, which she initiated, continues to foster a lively exchange between the museum, regional artists and the public.
Through her dedication to preserving and documenting the cultural identity of the city, Ellen Schwinzer leaves a lasting legacy. She was a respected expert and a valued colleague and superior. Her vision of establishing the museum as a place of encounter and dialogue between past and present will live on beyond her death. Ellen Schwinzer's contributions to Hamm as a city of culture will be long remembered. Our deepest sympathies go to her family, her friends and all those who had the privilege of accompanying her on her professional and personal journey.
Turkish & English Translation Ramazan Can - Home
Here you will find the English and Turkish translation of the exhibition text by Ramazan Can – Home.
Opening Hours
Museum, Shop & Library
Closed on Mondays
Tuesday to Saturday 10 am – 5 pm
Sunday 10 am – 6 pm
Opening Hours on Public Holidays
Open
Easter Sunday, Ascension Day, Whit Sunday, Corpus Christi
Closed
Good Friday, Easter Monday, Labour Day, Whit Monday, German Unity Day, All Saints' Day, 23 December, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day, New Year's Eve, New Year's Day
Café KunstWerke
Tuesday to Saturday 10 am – 5 pm
Sunday 10 am – 6 pm
Artothek
Wednesday and Saturday 1 – 4 pm
Admission
Permanent Exhibitions (incl. Studio) / Special Exhibition
Adults
€5 / €8
Concessions
€2.50 / €4
Children and young people up to 18 years
Free admission to all permanent and special exhibitions
Groups of 10 or more
€3 per person / €6 per person
Public guided tours
€3 per person (ages 6+) plus admission
Private guided tours
€55 plus admission per person (duration: 60 minutes)
€75 plus admission per person (duration: 90 minutes)
€100 plus admission per person (duration: 120 minutes)
"Hammer Museumstag" – every first Sunday of the month:
Adults enjoy free admission to the permanent exhibitions incl. the South Wing / reduced admission to special exhibitions in the Oberlichtsaal
Free admission to permanent and special exhibitions
- Children and young people up to 18 years
- Members of Museumsverein Hamm e.V.
- Members of ICOM (International Council of Museums)
- Members of Deutscher Verband für Kunstgeschichte e.V.
- Members of Deutscher Museumsbund e.V.
- Members of Bundesverband Museumspädagogik e.V.
- Holders of the RuhrKultur.Card
- School groups plus two accompanying teachers per class
Concession rates apply to
- Students
- Apprentices / trainees
- Subscribers to art Kunstmagazin
- Holders of the Ehrenamtskarte Nordrhein-Westfalen (voluntary work card)
- Severely disabled persons (from a disability degree of 50)
- Severely disabled persons with the "B" designation – accompanying person admitted free
- Recipients of benefits under Sozialgesetzbuch II (SGB II)
- Participants in Bundesfreiwilligendienst, Freiwilliges Soziales Jahr and voluntary military service
Getting Here
How to Find Us
Gustav-Lübcke-Museum
Neue Bahnhofstr. 9
59065 Hamm
The Gustav-Lübcke-Museum is centrally located in the city of Hamm.
The museum is a 2-minute walk from the main railway and bus station.
By Car
- A2: Exit Hamm, heading towards Hamm/Innenstadt; follow Werler Straße (B 63) towards the Hauptbahnhof
- A1: Exit Hamm/Bergkamen, heading towards Hamm/Innenstadt; follow Dortmunder Straße (B 61) towards the Hauptbahnhof
Parking
The Gustav-Lübcke-Museum does not have its own car park. Please use the following options:
- Parking spaces on Schwarzer Weg and adjacent side streets
- Car park "Park 24", Bahnhofstraße 19 (for sat-nav: "Am Stadtbad 4")
- Multi-storey car park at the station | Heinrich-von-Kleist-Forum (entrance via Gustav-Heinemann-Straße)
- Parking for disabled badge holders | Ferdinand-Poggel-Straße
By Rail
- Regional trains and numerous ICE services stop at Hamm Hauptbahnhof
- Exit at Hamm Hbf, follow signs towards the city centre
Accessibility
Accessibility at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum
We want our museum to be accessible to everyone. We already offer:
- Wheelchair access via a ramp at the main entrance
- Wheelchair access to all exhibition rooms by lift
- An accessible toilet and baby-changing facilities in the step-free lower ground floor
- Free, barrier-free telephone tours of the current special exhibitions, usually once a month (Bei Anruf Kultur)
Wheelchairs, pushchairs and folding stools can also be borrowed free of charge at the museum ticket desk.
Assistance dogs welcome!
Assistance dogs are warmly welcome at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum, provided they are identified as such. If you are planning to visit with an assistance dog, please let us know so that we can support you as best we can.
Not all areas are barrier-free yet. We are working, for example, on making our website and exhibition content more inclusive. Thank you for your understanding!
Do you have questions about accessibility? Please contact us at museum@stadt.hamm.de or +49 2381 17 57 01. We are happy to help. Your suggestions and feedback are very welcome!
Getting to the Museum
Directions from the station for visitors with visual impairments:
Follow the tactile guidance strip in the station concourse to the exit and turn right.
Follow the strip to the end and cross the street on your left. At the end of this guidance strip, turn left and then right again.
You are now on the forecourt of the Heinrich-von-Kleist-Forum. Follow the guidance strip across Bibliotheksplatz to the end, then keep to the right along the cobblestones.
Turn onto the paved path and follow it for approximately 3 minutes until you reach a tactile strip at a set of traffic lights.
Unfortunately, this set of traffic lights does not have an acoustic or tactile signal. Cross at the lights and keep slightly to the right until you feel cobblestones again and a three-step staircase.
Walk through the covered forecourt of the museum, across a carpet, to the revolving door of the museum.
There is a doorbell on the right-hand side of the door.
Inside the museum, our visitor services staff are happy to assist you and answer any questions.
To reach the exhibition rooms, the café and the toilets as easily as possible, you can use the lift. It is located to the left of the entrance, in the exhibition room for Archaeology and Applied Art. The individual floors are marked in Braille. There are no audio announcements.
The toilets and cloakroom are on the lower ground floor. On the ground floor you will find the ticket desk and museum shop, the two permanent exhibitions „Altes Ägypten“ ("Ancient Egypt") and „Angewandte Kunst – Funktionalität & Design“ ("Applied Art – Functionality & Design"), as well as the Forum. On the first floor you will find our museum café. From there, a ramp leads to the exhibitions in the Oberlichtsaal, or further up to the Artothek and the library.
Arriving by car for visitors with mobility impairments:
There is a disabled parking space on Ferdinand-Poggel-Straße. The ramp leading to the museum courtyard is approximately 50 metres away.
At the end of the ramp, turn left and cross the covered forecourt of the museum to reach the revolving door.
Directions from the station to the museum for visitors with mobility impairments:
If you are arriving by train, turn right at the main exit of the station…
…and, just past the bus stop, cross the road using the pedestrian crossing.
Turn right and cross at the traffic lights. The red brick building ahead of you is the museum.
The ramp is located on the left-hand side of the building. To reach it, walk past the main entrance of the museum.
Keep to the left past the ramp to reach the main entrance of the museum.
Please feel free to ring the bell at the side door to the right of the revolving door. Our visitor services team will be happy to help and will open the door for you.
To reach the lift, go left from the entrance and through the door into the permanent exhibitions for Archaeology and Applied Art. The lift takes you either down to the toilets and cloakroom, or up to the museum café and the upper exhibition rooms. The other floors are of course also accessible via the ramp. If you have any questions or need assistance, please do not hesitate to ask our visitor services team.
Café KunstWerke
A café in the heart of the museum!
The café is located in the middle of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum, on the first floor, behind the building's generous glass façade. Flooded with light, it offers guests an open view of the inner courtyard as well as an impressive perspective on the architecturally distinctive interior. Barrier-free access to the café and the possibility of visiting free of charge were central considerations from the very beginning of the planning process.
© Thorsten Hübner There are 45 seats in total, spread across smaller tables for two, tables for four, a group table and several seats at the central counter. The technical infrastructure allows guests to work with a laptop at many of the tables, and there is a stable, free Wi-Fi network. Younger visitors have also been catered for, with their own children's table including a drawing and reading corner. Altogether, Café KunstWerke offers a welcoming space with a very high quality of stay.
A wide selection of hot and cold drinks, cakes, sandwiches and hot dishes is available.
It is well worth taking a look at the food and drinks menu – ideally on site, or here.
The Café KunstWerke team can be reached on +49 170 92 89 534 and looks forward to welcoming you Tuesday to Sunday during museum opening hours.
Enjoy your meal!
The café is closed from 22 December 2025 to 4 January 2026.
© Thorsten Hübner Museum Shop
Culture & Shopping
The museum shop of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum is a light-filled space offering catalogues, art and specialist books on the museum's collection focuses, distinctive design objects, original gifts and surprising finds for young and old alike.
Involving local and regional suppliers has been particularly important to us. Products from the FUgE Weltladen in Hamm and the museum's own honey have been part of the range for several years. Since the special exhibition „Faszination Papier“ ("The Fascination of Paper"), hand-signed art cards by Jessica Maria Toliver have become a permanent addition to the selection.
© Thorsten Hübner, Stadt Hamm Recent additions include word and shape games made from upcycled materials by aiu, as well as hand-embroidered canvas works from Hofatelier Applebeach. Under the Applebeach label we already sell cleverly designed wash bags and totes made from the façade banners of past special exhibitions. It is precisely this enriching ‘local heroes’ range that has given the museum shop a considerable upgrade.
It is not only a place of inspiration for those interested in art and culture, but an insider tip for anyone looking for original gifts.
© Thorsten Hübner, Stadt Hamm The museum shop is open throughout museum opening hours – no admission ticket required.
Tuesday to Saturday 10 am – 5 pm, Sunday 10 am – 6 pm.
Happy shopping!
Library
Literature at the Museum
The library of the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum holds specialist literature in art history and cultural studies, with a focus on the museum's own collection areas: Egyptology, Archaeology, Applied Art, twentieth-century art, graphic arts and local history.
Particularly noteworthy are the extensive selection of current art journals, reference works and artist monographs, as well as a wide range of collection and exhibition catalogues. The holdings continue to grow through targeted acquisitions.
Items cannot be borrowed, but you are very welcome to consult them on site.
Please feel free to contact us by e-mail: museum@stadt.hamm.de
or by telephone: +49 2381 17-5714
The extensive library holdings can be searched online HERE via the catalogue of the Zentralbibliothek Hamm.
Foto: Gustav-Lübcke-Museum Hamm Artothek
Art to borrow!
Across some 130 m², the Artothek presents contemporary works by regional and national artists. The repertoire is wide-ranging and includes painting, drawing, printmaking, photography and sculpture.
The Artothek has been run on a voluntary basis since 2008. Works can be borrowed for three months for a small fee, or longer on request. We are also happy to put you in touch with the respective artist. Borrowed works are handed over professionally packed.
Foto © Thorsten Hübner Loan fees per quarter:
Yellow category – €6
Green category – €12
Blue category – €20
Wednesday + Saturday 1 – 4 pm
Please feel free to contact us by e-mail at artothek@museum-hamm.de or by telephone: +49 2381 17-5724
Foto © Thorsten Hübner The Artothek also regularly hosts private views focusing on an individual artist. An accompanying programme offers opportunities for direct exchange, including artist talks.
Venue Hire
Forum & Library
With the Forum, the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum has a multifunctional event hall which, in addition to standard row seating (270 seats), also allows for banquet, conference or parliamentary seating arrangements – making it an ideal venue for a wide range of formats such as congresses, symposia and specialist conferences.
Smaller groups (approx. 15 people) can also hold workshops, presentations and similar events in the library.
If you require additional services (technical support / catering), please do get in touch.
Contact: Lars Gödecker
E-mail: Goedecker@Stadt.Hamm.de
Tel: +49 2381 17-5706
The terms of use and fee schedule for hiring rooms at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum are available as a PDF here.
© Marion Freitag Photography in the Museum
Roll camera!
Filming and photography for editorial and/or private purposes is generally permitted at the Gustav-Lübcke-Museum without flash, tripod or selfie stick, unless indicated otherwise.
Only the existing museum lighting may be used for photography and filming. A minimum distance of 1.5 metres from the artworks must also be maintained.
Please note that fees are payable to VG Bild-Kunst for any use of the images.
Foto: Gustav-Lübcke-Museum Hamm 