Kunsthalle Bielefeld, designed by New York architect Philip Johnson and opened in 1968 as a museum and exhibition centre for international 20th century art, is a crowd-puller and one of the city’s landmarks. The famous cube-shaped modern building of red sandstone is also part of the architectural route ”Museum & Architektur”. Apart from first-rate temporary exhibitions, the collection of twentieth-century art includes works by Picasso, Sonia and Robert Delaunay, Max Beckmann, Man Ray and others. The public sculpture park nearby was redesigned in 2008 to the original plans.

Closed for alterations in between the special exhibitions.

Opening times	Tues-Sun 11.00-18.00, Wed 11.00-21.00,
	Sat 10.00-18.00
Entrance fees	adults 8,00 €
	(groups 6,00 €, concessions 2,00 - 4,00 €)
Guided tours	by appointment

The Museum of History tells the story of Bielefeld and the surrounding area from the city’s foundation in 1214 to the present day in a vivid and lively way. The museum is undergoing a reorganisation over the next few years, starting with the opening of the new Middle Ages section in 2014. The focus of the exhibition remains the history of industrialisation in and around Bielefeld. The museum itself is housed in one of the principal starting-points of that development, the restored buildings of the former Ravensberg Spinning Mill. In that setting, original machinery and products from the main branches of industry – such as the famous Bielefeld sewing machines and bicycles, and products made by the firm of Dr. Oetker – along with artefacts of working-class culture and the middle classes illustrate the working methods and lifestyles of the city’s population. The Museum of History also hosts special exhibitions from time to time. These look at historical aspects in greater detail and focus on current topics using modern methods and display techniques.

Opening times	Wed - Fri 10.00 - 17.00, Sat, Sun 11.00 - 18.00
Entrance fees	adults 6,00 €
	(groups 5,00 €)
Guided tours	by appointment

The Huelsmann Museum is located in the former manager's mansion of the Ravensberg Spinning Mill built in 1865. On show are masterpieces of European craft movements from the Renaissance, Baroque, and Classicism. The renowned private collection formed by the art dealer couple Huelsmann, and owned by the town since 1984, provides the core of this arts and crafts museum. It is complemented by pieces from the Hertha Koenig bequest and by the small but very significant collection of the Cultural History Museum originally acquired after the war. Particularly fine are the secular silver, spanning the 16th to 19th centuries, and the works in glass. Ceramics and porcelain are exhibited together with German and English furniture, small bronzes, wall hangings and wallpapers, as well as art from Eastern Asia. Scientific instruments and sundials are displayed in a separate section. In addition to exquisitely crafted everyday objects there are purely decorative items such as ornate goblets and elaborate centrepieces. Every period from the Renaissance to Classicism is represented by unique works of art.

Opening times	Wed-Sat 14.00-18.00, Sun 11.00-18.00
	group visits can be arranged outside opening hours
Entrance fees	adults 7,00 €
	(groups & students 4,00 €)
Guided tours	by appointment

This museum of rural life not only won a Special Commendation in the European Museum of the Year Award 2001, it is also Germany’s oldest open-air museum and was established on the Ochsenheide hill in Bielefeld in 1917. The Möllering farmhouse dating from 1590 was brought over from Rödinghausen and rebuilt on this site with generous voluntary, private and public support. Also on the site are a bakehouse (1764), a store house (1795), a windmill (1686), and a flax mill (1826) which together paint a picture of farm life in the Ravensberg area up to the mid-nineteenth century. A barn (1807) houses the café, while a former craftsman’s house (1568)
contains educational activities for children.

Opening times	Feb to Dec:
	Tues-Fri 10.00-18.00, Sat,Sun 11.00-18.00
Entrance fees	adults 4,00 €
	concessions 2,00 €
Guided tours	by appointment

Bielefelder Kunstverein is situated in the buildings of the former museum of cultural history, the Waldhof, a manor farm once belonging to local nobility, built in the style of the Weser Renaissance and dating from the 16th century, making it one of the oldest buildings in the city. With about 1,000 members, Bielefelder Kunstverein is one of the most significant and substantial art societies in Germany. Four exhibitions each year focus on contemporary themes and the latest art in all media. Arriving young international artists and architects not yet or recently discovered by the arts scene are given a venue.

Opening times	Tues,Fri 15.00-19.00, Sat,Sun 12.00-19.00
	Mon - Wed by prior arrangement
Entrance fees	adults 3,00 €
	concessions 1,50 €
	under-18s free, entry is free on Fridays

The concept underlying the Extinction – Survival exhibition turns the conventional sequence of natural history exhibitions (past – present – future) on its head. In this museum the visitor travels into the future and looks back through the years at our present day. Dozens of animals all threatened by human activity and preserved in a chilled showcase line the visitor’s route. Fossilised contemporary witnesses invite us to learn from the lessons of the past. The vaulted cellar of the museum houses a unique mining gallery, where visitors can find out how geologists unravel the human influence on Planet Earth as a system. There is an extensive programme of educational activities for children and adults.

Opening times	Wed - Sun 10.00- 17.00
Entrance fees	adults 4,00 € special exhibitions
	concessions 2,50 € special exhibitions

Tucked away in the courtyard of the houses at 48 and 50 Viktoriastraße is a former linen works which in the nineteen-nineties was turned into a museum unique in Germany. It was built in 1913 for a Jewish businessman, Hugo Juhl, to manufacture table linen and bed linen, ladies’ underwear and men’s shirts. In 1938, the political situation prompted him to sell the firm. It was taken over by the Winkel brothers and production continued on this site until the nineteen-eighties. The factory stood idle for a few years before it was purchased in 1993 by the Förderverein Projekt Wäschefabrik e. V. association with funding from the North Rhine-Westphalia Foundation. The old factory, still with its original equipment, is now open to visitors and changing exhibitions are staged here.

Opening times	Sun 11.00-18.00
Entrance fees	adults 3,00 €
	reduced 1,50 €
Guided tours	by appointment

The small, but very appealing German Fan Museum is located in the heart of Bielefeld's Old Town. It presents the cultural and historical significance of the fan throughout past centuries. Topic-specific exhibitions complement the collection.

Opening times	Wed-Thurs 14.30-17.30
	group visits by appointment
Entrance fees	adults € 3,00
Guided tours	by appointment