MUNICH.- For one of the most extensive and important collections of modern art – the Brandhorst Collection, which is part of the distinctively organized Udo and Anette Brandhorst Foundation the Bavarian state government has commissioned the construction of a museum in Munich. On an area adjacent to the Pinakothek der Moderne, the winners of the contest in December 2002, Sauerbruch Hutton Architects, will be erecting a three-story, well-defined structure containing approximately 3200 square meters of exhibition space that will open to the north side of Munich's museum complex, located in the center of town. With its lightness, inner logic and natural elegance, the design corresponds to the profile of the collection, which combines private passion with high museological standards.

The spatial concept of the architecture, which will take daylight closely into account, was developed in close cooperation with the architects. This will guarantee an optimal presentation of the art works.

The collection contains well over 700 important works from seminal artists of the 20th and 21st century, which have been turned over for an indefinite period of time to the Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen and, thus, to the public at large. Especially noteworthy are exemplary groups of works from Cy Twombly, Andy Warhol, Sigmar Polke, Damien Hirst and the sketchbooks of Pablo Picasso. Further important exemplars in the development of modern art can be found in works by Joseph Beuys, Mario Merz, Jannis Kounellis, Georg Baselitz, Bruce Nauman, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Mike Kelley and many others.

The architecture offers the perfect prerequisites for the presentation of this comprehensive collection: it makes possible the concentration and grouping of works, and provides for a comparative tour through the multi-faceted collection cosmos.

Through the Brandhorst Foundation, Munich is set to gain, above and beyond the benefits to the Pinakothek der Moderne, a remarkably diverse developmental potential which, in its significant cultural position, will have far-reaching reverberations. With the financial support of the foundation, the collection will be continuously developed and refined in consultation with the Pinakothek der Moderne. Additionally, the Foundation will make possible a wealth of creative and scientific advancements.

Together with the Pinakothek der Moderne, a unique chance will emerge to examine art of the 20th and 21st centuries in an insightful overview, in addition to an intentional focusing on individual works in thought-provoking interaction. In conjunction with the Alte and Neue Pinakothek museums that, together with the Glyptothek and Antikensammlung, make up an internationally incomparable, wide-ranging cultural formation, the Brandhorst Collection will not function as an isolated unit, but as an equal partner. The Brandhorst Museum will increase Munich's museum complex the so called Kunstareal and help sharpen its profile. Museum Brandhorst will open in spring 2009.