An Expressionist Itinerary
A Journey through Bavaria’s Expressionist Heartland
Spread out between the Bavarian capital of Munich and the dramatic peaks of the Alps lies one of Germany’s most enchanting landscapes. Here, rolling green hills meet crystal-clear lakes, and towering folded mountains and moraines frame marvellous vistas—a setting so picturesque it once captivated a generation of artists at the beginning of the 20th century that went on to establish one of the most significant movements in artistic creation for the decades following.
When young painters in the years leading up to WWI flocked to this region, they were drawn in by its wild beauty and vivid natural palette. Before joining Die Brücke in Dresden, Emil Nolde and Ernst Ludwig Kirchner found inspiration in these landscapes, experimenting with bold strokes and striking colours. The most prominent figures of Der Blaue Reiter—Wassily Kandinsky, Gabriele Münter, Franz Marc, Alexej von Jawlensky, and Heinrich Campendonk—formed particularly deep connections to this land, its tranquility and at the time untamed spirit.
Today, art and nature continue to intertwine in stunning Bavarian scenery, where six museums tell the story of these avant-garde pioneers. As a particularly dreary German winter is finally drawing to a close, here’s an itinerary to experience the finest German expressionist masterpieces this spring with the spectacular backdrop of lakes, forests and skies that once inspired Franz Marc and his contemporaries to capture nature in powerful colours and form.
Begin your journey at the Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus in Munich, located in the former villa of painter Franz von Lenbach. The museum boasts the world’s most extensive collection of Der Blaue Reiter works, offering a perfect introduction to the movement’s bold colours and emotional intensity. Here, the legacies of Wassily Kandinsky, Gabriele Münter, Franz Marc, Elisabeth Epstein, Marianne von Werefkin, and Paul Klee and many others make the visit a spectacular albeit less romantic item on the itinerary, including both Marc’s “Das blaue Pferd” Macke’s “Das türkische Café” as focal points.
Just outside of Munich, nestled along serene banks of Lake Starnberg, lies the Buchheim Museum der Phantasie in Bernried. The region between Starnberg and Ammersee has long been a favourite escape for Munich city dwellers, where charming villages sit alongside baroque churches, castles, monasteries and shimmering lakes. The museum itself is housed in a modernist building, designed by Olympic architect Günter Behnisch, showcases the legendary collection of Lothar-Günther Buchheim, famed author of Das Boot and includes works by Erich Heckel, Emil Nolde, Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, and Max Pechstein.
A 20 minute drive south lies the Museum Penzberg - Sammlung Campendonk. The museum's collection is built around the German-Dutch expressionist Heinrich Campendonk, who in 1911, at 21 years old, left the Rhineland for Bavaria, becoming the youngest member of the Blaue Reiter movement. While his fellow artists were drawn to the nature around the town, Campendonk found unexpected beauty in Penzberg’s industrial landscape, with its colony houses and mining facilities. These early works—deeply influenced by his surroundings—would serve as a foundation for later endeavours in a more distinctive artistic style, which continued to evolve into the 1950s. The Museum Penzberg holds the largest collection of his works worldwide, a remarkable trove of oil paintings, watercolors, brush and ink drawings, and woodcuts. The collection grew significantly in 2010, when a private collector contributed another 87 works, and was expanded again in 2016, when 200 additional pieces were added to the museum’s permanent display.
Beyond its artistic treasures, Penzberg sits at the gateway to one of Bavaria’s most enchanting natural landscapes: the Osterseen region. The 19 lakes near Iffeldorf, shifting from silvery grey to turquoise green, are where Franz Marc settled in Sindelsdorf, often welcoming fellow artists Kandinsky, Jawlensky, and Münter to his summer retreat.
Again further south, past the Benediktbeuren monastery, lies the Franz Marc Museum above Lake Kochel. Established in 1986, the museum was conceived as a tribute to Franz Marc, celebrating his profound connection to the landscape that inspired some of his most iconic works. Since 2008, an impressive modern extension has allowed the museum to display an expanded collection, spanning not only Marc’s oeuvre but also works from his contemporaries in the Blaue Reiter, Brücke, and even post-war abstraction on three floors. This allows the museum to present an overview of the two important avant-garde movements in Germany before the First World War, but also the continuation of these artistic paths after the Second World War. The collection, with over 2,000 works, features paintings, watercolours, prints, and sculptures by Paul Klee, August Macke, Gabriele Münter, and Wassily Kandinsky among others. The core of the collection is formed by an unmatched assembly of several hundred works by Franz Marc, offering a rare and comprehensive insight into his creative evolution. Few institutions can match this depth of focus but also diversity , making it an essential stop for those eager to delve into the artistic impulses that shaped Modernism.
The museum's architecture harmonises seamlessly with its surroundings. A sculpture park, dotted with pieces by Tony Cragg, Alf Lechner, Per Kirkeby, Horst Antes, Norbert Kricke, and Renée Sintenis, invites visitors looking to linger. Meanwhile, the viewing room on the second floor frames a breathtaking panorama of the lake and Alpine foothills.
The final item on the itinerary is Murnau am Staffelsee, a creative haven once affectionatly named “Das Blaue Land” by Franz Marc with its everchanging blue hues that dance across the landscape, making it easy to see how area captivated the artist. Through its charming pedestrian zone, where traditional Bavarian architecture by Emanuel von Seidl meets a more relaxed southern and not-very-German-at-all atmosphere, visitors make their way to the Schlossmuseum Murnau, perched at the town’s highest point. The museum displays a collection of works by Gabriele Münter, Wassily Kandinsky, Marianne von Werefkin, and Alexej von Jawlensky, alongside other members of the Neue Künstlervereinigung München and provides a unique glimpse into how these artists immersed themselves in Bavarian folk art, particularly the unique craft of reverse glass painting, which influenced their groundbreaking expressionist style.
Nearby is another smaller but no less significant site: the Gabriele Münter Haus. With its charming blue-and-white façade it was once known locally as the ‘Das Russenhaus’ - and viewed with some scepticism - a place where the avant-garde gathered, and where the visionary Der Blaue Reiter almanac took shape. Acquired by Münter in August of 1909, the former home now welcomes visitors to experience the carefully restored interiors in which a period of intense artistic innovation was conceived. Münter, who lived here with her partner Kandinsky, was a pioneering modernist in her own right, with her works receiving increased international recognition in more recent years. It was during her time in Murnau where she discovered a bold, vibrant pictorial language, while Kandinsky took his defining leap toward abstraction, the idyllic landscape profoundly influencing both of their work.
German Expressionism’s bold use of colour, emotional intensity, abstract form and ability to capture raw, subjective interpretation not only marks the works stemming from the movement as defining for the development of Modernism in the 20th century but also makes them some of the most sought after and highly valued in the art market today. A highly convenient roadtrip just outside of Munich not only spoils with an unparalleled abundance of works to marvel at but also may surprise some, as it reveals the humble origins of the movement, arising – to at least a significant portion - from the villages and landscapes of the Bavarian countryside.