Münster’s LWL Museum is an open, vivid, and communicative exhibition art venue of international renown.

The collections provide an overview of twelve centuries of Westphalian and European art history with works from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, and the Baroque era, as well as classic modern art and contemporary art. The museum’s distinctive character lies in its association of artworks with other forms of expression such as music, dance and literature.

The LWL museum opened in 1908 as the result of the commitment of several local citizens. Its collections and exhibitions present the origin and history of the artefacts on display and establish links with works in the region and abroad. Particularly notable are the Skulptur Projekte exhibitions, the museum’s architecture, and works by Westphalian artists such as Annelise Kretschmer, August Macke, and the medieval sculptors Heinrich and Johann Brabender. Moreover, the LWL Museum developed an inclusive visitor concept and remains open until midnight on the second Friday of every month.

The exhibitions and events held at the museum address a large public. The LWL museum also carries out in-depth research on the items in the collections and presents the results transparently, making it a place to learn and to experience art for all age groups.

The digitisation of the collections is a new challenge: the works made available worldwide over the Internet inspire and establish links between international art aficionados.

The virtual collection is conceived as a complement to an on-site visit, as an opportunity to better match the interests of the public, and to promote inclusion and diversity.

• Audience development
  The digitisation of the works was performed with a view to meeting the diverse interests and expectations of a broad public, especially those of young people, families and the disabled.
• Digital collections
  The virtual collection complements a visit to the real museum. Thanks to creative applications and the unlimited accessibility of the digitised items, people the world over can enjoy the works of art preserved at the museum.
• Open access
  Our digital strategy aims at enabling international networking and data interoperability. Wherever possible, we make our expertise freely available to scientists and artists using international digitisation and state-of-the-art data enhancement standards.
• Equivalence and monitoring
  We place virtual and on-site visits on the same level and further develop digital tools based on user behaviours.
• Digital communication and the visitor's journey
  Digitisation enables us to improve external communications and visitor services, to create low-threshold access to all museum areas, and to develop transparent communications in accordance with our guiding principles.
• Mediation and visualisation
  We implement novel reflection, narration, and education tools that involve inspiring and participative elements and make our expertise available to all visitors.
• Infrastructure
  We are developing a digital infrastructure that includes hardware, software, and WLAN technology in all areas and workplaces of the museum.
• Omnipresence
  The digital infrastructure is present in all work areas and all projects of the museum.
• Collaborative work
  We have developed a modern approach to collaboration that involves digital tools and improves transparency, communication, and the workflow among the museum staff.
• Digital humanities
  Our digital concept is also applied to the staff structure. Hiring new staff members takes into account the digital tasks relevant to the role in question.
• Digital literacy
  We actively promote the expertise of staff members on digital topics by offering regular training sessions.