Light show in the heart of Schwabing

If you happen to stroll over Königsplatz in Munich in the next couple of weeks, you will have the opportunity to enjoy exceptional light and video installations. With their project “Kunstareal verbindet”, artist Betty Mü (born in 1973 as Bettina Müller) and her team bring art to the doorstep of the Pinakotheken. For the last two decades, Betty Mü has been a female pioneer of digital video art, and has made an international name for herself with her inventive work.

Munich's Königsplatz is currently shining in "art"-ifical light.

But let’s start at Königsplatz. Large-scale video installations embellish the high walls of the Antikensammlung. The video installation "Inside | Out" shows various exhibits from the museums, and views of the buildings and the Kunstareal, as image projections on the walls. Abstract, surreal, or symmetrically mirrored, these images appear and disappear just as fast. You have to take your time to let the images sink in. After dark, light rays connect the rooftops of the monumental buildings at Königsplatz. An unusual view. Right next door, Yul Zeser has illuminated the Propyläen with softboxes from inside. The bright, warm light presents the classicistic building in a surreal, spaceship-like atmosphere.

Let’s move on to Alte Pinakothek. On the large meadow in front of the building you can find 18 glowing spheres by Helmut Eding. They stand for the 18 Kunstareal Museums. The brightly shining spheres with the lit Pinakothek in the background have become a popular photographic subject this winter.

If you turn around the corner and enter Barer Straße, you end up in a fairy tale forest: the tops of the trees lining the street are lit up; the light changes from violet to blue, from green to red. Benches invite visitors to linger and enjoy.

The video installation from Königsplatz continues on the walls of the Pinakothek der Moderne.

And lastly, you should pay a visit to the opposite side of Barer Straße, to the meadow between Museum Reich der Kristalle and Pinakothek der Moderne. The video installation from Königsplatz continues on the walls of the Pinakothek. The center of the installation is the notable Futuro-house by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen. It glows from inside with orange light. In the 60s, the building stood in as a symbol for the vision of futuristic building. The unshaken belief in science and technology encouraged architects and designers to come up with the wildest ideas as to what future buildings might look like. You can bring your trip to a close at the adjoining Brandhorst Museum where moving lights illuminate the coloured bars of the facade. A feast for the senses.

The center of the installation is the notable Futuro-house by Finnish architect Matti Suuronen. It glows from inside with orange light.

The light initiative “Das Kunstareal verbindet” can be viewed free of charge from the beginning of December until 14 February 2021. Parts of the video installations will be changed from time to time, in order to allow for new experiences and discoveries. Infos under: www.kunstareal.de/lichtaktion