Kunstmuseum Stuttgart

• Name — Kunstmuseum Stuttgart • Established — 2005 • Location — Kleiner Schlossplatz 13, 70173 Stuttgart, Germany • Type — Art museum • Director — Ulrike Groos • Website — https: www.kunstmuseum-stuttgart.de/en

The site now occupied by the cubic structure of the new Kunstmuseum was once home to the ruins of the Kronprinzenpalais, which had been damaged during an air raid in 1944. The Kronprinzenpalais had served as an urban counterpart to the Wilhelmspalais at the opposite end of the Planie. After the ruins were demolished in 1963, the Planie was redeveloped into a six-lane road with four additional tunnels designed for both cars and trams. To make crossing in the Königstraße easier for pedestrians, the stair-like Kleine Schloßplatz was constructed in 1968. However, it never fully met its intended purpose and was not widely embraced. For years, discussions revolved around demolishing the structure, as it was seen as unnecessary, especially after the surface-level street had been covered again. The construction of the new Kunstmuseum after the year 2000 filled this gap in the urban landscape next to the Königsbau along Königstraße.

The first director of the Kunstmuseum Stuttgart, Marion Ackermann, became the director of the Kunstsammlung NRW in Düsseldorf in 2009. Ulrike Groos, former director of the Kunsthalle Düsseldorf, took over the leadership of the Kunstmuseum in 2010.