Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst

Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst is a registered non-profit art association (eingetragener Verein) based in Nuremberg, Germany, dedicated to the mediation and presentation of contemporary art. It was founded in 1994 and operates exhibition spaces inside an old bunker and ABC (atomic, biological, chemical) shelter located behind the Kunsthalle Nürnberg on the Bauhof site. The association is a grassroots, artist- and curator-driven institution rather than a commercial gallery or a municipal museum, and it has become a long-standing fixture of Nuremberg's independent art scene. The programme is broad and interdisciplinary, spanning solo and group exhibitions, performances, concerts, workshops, lectures, film screenings, listening sessions and discussion rounds. Its archive of past events documents more than three decades of activity, including exhibitions by internationally recognised figures such as Franz West, Erwin Wurm, Daniel Spoerri, Jutta Koether, Walter Van Beirendonck and the Otolith Group, alongside emerging and regional artists. The venue is open to the public during exhibitions, typically Wednesday to Saturday from 16:00 to 20:00 and Sunday from 14:00 to 18:00, and by appointment. In 2020 the association received the Preis der Stadt Nürnberg (Prize of the City of Nuremberg), a civic recognition of its contribution to the city's cultural life. In 2025 it marked its 30+ year history with a programme of exhibition, discussion and party. The kunstbunker remains an active, non-commercial platform whose identity is tied to its unusual architectural setting — a former civil-defence bunker repurposed as a forum for contemporary art.

Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst was founded in 1994 as a registered association (eingetragener Verein) in Nuremberg, Germany. Its exhibition spaces are located in an old bunker and ABC (atomic, biological, chemical) protection shelter behind the Kunsthalle Nürnberg on the Bauhof site, a setting that gives the institution its name and much of its character. From the outset the association was dedicated to the mediation of contemporary art, operating as an independent, non-commercial platform rather than a municipal museum or commercial gallery. Over the following decades the kunstbunker built a continuous programme of exhibitions and events. Its archive lists activities from at least 2011 onward, including the group exhibition 'Future Garden' in 2011 featuring artists such as Walter Van Beirendonck, Jason Bunton, Herbert de Colle/Hannes Ribarits, Gregor Eichinger, Gerhard Himmer, Anna Jermolaewa, Uwe Jonas, Franco Kappl, Jutta Koether, Eilidh McNair, Christoph Meier, Ute Müller, Wolfgang Obermair, Jürgen Paas, Maruša Sagadin, Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair, Norbert Schwontkowski, Ezara Spangl, Daniel Spoerri, Christian Stock, Rita Vitorelli, Stefan Waibel, Franz West and Erwin Wurm. In the same year the artist Stephan Dillemuth presented 'Corporate Rokoko' (14 November – 11 December 2011), accompanied by a lecture on 17 November 2011 at the invitation of students of the Akademie der Bildenden Künste in Nürnberg, curated by Hermann Gabler. The programme continued through the 2010s and 2020s with a mix of exhibitions, performances, concerts, workshops, film weekends, listening sessions and theoretical discussions. Documented events include 'an open net casts shadows' (2022), 'Gestern, heute, morgen' (2022), 'Theorie installieren: Die Idee des Neuen' (2023), 'BREAKNECK' by Vanessa Conte (2023), 'Sound politisiert' (2024), 'The End of the End of Selling Out' (2024), 'WHY CONTINUE?' with Ultra-red (2024), 'The Otolith Group' (2025), a concert and workshop by Limpe Fuchs (2025), and 'Full of Days' (2025). In 2025 the association marked its 30+ year history with an exhibition, discussion round and party (19–28 September 2025). In 2020 the association was awarded the Preis der Stadt Nürnberg, recognising its long-standing contribution to the city's cultural life. The kunstbunker remains active, with exhibitions scheduled into 2026, including 'Torsten Slama / Learning from Progress' (27 August – 4 October 2026) and a project by Wolf D. Harhammer with contributions by Renate Härtl, Julius Jurkiewitsch and Leonie Nagel (23 May – 5 July 2026).

• 2026

  Exhibitions scheduled, including 'Torsten Slama / Learning from Progress' (27 August – 4 October 2026).

• 2025

  30+ year anniversary marked with an exhibition, discussion round and party (19–28 September 2025).

• 2020

  The association receives the Preis der Stadt Nürnberg (Prize of the City of Nuremberg).

• 2011

  Group exhibition 'Future Garden' and Stephan Dillemuth's 'Corporate Rokoko' are presented.

• 1994

  Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst is founded as a registered association in Nuremberg.

Non-commercial, artist-run contemporary art forum in an unusual historic bunker setting; a civic and independent cultural platform rather than a commercial gallery.

• Future Garden (2011 group exhibition)

  Group exhibition featuring Walter Van Beirendonck, Jason Bunton, Herbert de Colle/Hannes Ribarits, Gregor Eichinger, Gerhard Himmer, Anna Jermolaewa, Uwe Jonas, Franco Kappl, Jutta Koether, Eilidh McNair, Christoph Meier, Ute Müller, Wolfgang Obermair, Jürgen Paas, Maruša Sagadin, Ekaterina Shapiro-Obermair, Norbert Schwontkowski, Ezara Spangl, Daniel Spoerri, Christian Stock, Rita Vitorelli, Stefan Waibel, Franz West and Erwin Wurm.

• Stephan Dillemuth – Corporate Rokoko (2011)

  Exhibition (14 November – 11 December 2011) with a lecture on 17 November 2011, curated by Hermann Gabler.

• 30+ Jahre kunstbunker (2025)

  Anniversary exhibition, discussion round and party (19–28 September 2025).

1. 1kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst (official website)kunstbunker-nuernberg.org
2. 2Stephan Dillemuth – kunstbunker (official website page)kunstbunker-nuernberg.org
3. 3Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst (Wikidata)wikidata.org
4. 4Kunstbunker – forum für zeitgenössische kunst (German Wikipedia)de.wikipedia.org