Summer has arrived in Bavaria, and with the heat, Munich residents love to spend every free minute by the water. On weekends, nearby Lake Starnberg is particularly popular and becomes the number one destination for day trips. If you also enjoy spending time at Lake Starnberg but are looking for a change of pace from the usual day at the beach , then the Buchheim Museum in Bernried comes highly recommended. Here you can admire art without having to miss out on the lake view. And if you’re still looking to cool off, you can always go for a swim after your visit to the exhibition.
Extensive collection of Expressionist works
Lothar-Günther Buchheim was a German painter, photographer, and author whose book *Das Boot* is probably familiar to most of you. In 2001, he founded the Buchheim Museum on Lake Starnberg, which resembles a ship. A long pier leads from the building out onto the water, allowing you to enjoy a wonderful view across the lake and of the surrounding mountains . The Buchheim Museum itself displays Buchheim’s collection of Expressionist art across an area of 4,000 m². Together with the Lenbachhaus in Munich and other Upper Bavarian museums, it is part of the “MuSeenLandschaft Expressionismus” (Expressionism Museum Landscape).
The range of works on display is exceptionally broad, spanning artists from Erich Heckel to Max Pechstein and Alexej von Jawlensky. You can also admire works by Lothar-Günther Buchheim himself. The secondary collection, in turn, features pieces of folk art that Buchheim collected on his travels. Another exhibition focuses on the content of his book and explores his time in the submarine war during the 1940s.
25 Years of the Buchheim Museum
On May 23 , the Buchheim Museum celebrated its 25th anniversary. To mark the occasion , there’s a special exhibition looking back on the past quarter-century, which you can explore with or without a guided tour. You can also look forward to other anniversary events, such as readings, film screenings, and the Long Night of Art. The latter features various workshops, mini-tours, and concerts.
Of course, you can also visit the Buchheim Museum of the Imagination outside of the anniversary events and let the art there inspire you. Be sure to stop by the garden as well, where more fantastic sculptures await you. Especially when the weather is nice, the spacious park invites you to stroll and linger. If you’d like to combine your cultural day with some fun in the water, you don’t have to miss out: Just take a detour to the beach in Bernried and cool off. Or visit the nearby Höhenried Castle if you’d rather experience even more culture and history.
📍 Location: Am Hirschgarten 1, Bernried on Lake Starnberg
🕐 Hours: Tue–Sun, 10 a.m.–6 p.m.
💶 Price information: Adults €13, teens €6.50
