Museum of Applied Art (MAKK), Cologne

Museum of Applied Art in the city of Cologne ('Museum für Angewandte Kunst Köln', abbreviated MAKK) is a decorative arts museum featuring an extensive collection of porcelain, jewelry, architectural exhibits, weaponry, and furniture.

The city of Cologne decided to found an applied art museum in 1888. Originally, it featured collections of Matthias Joseph de Noel and Ferdinand Franz Wallraf. With the help of endowments, the museum was further expanded. Museum of Applied Art was originally built in a Neo-Gothic building in 1900. After it was destroyed in the 1943 bombing, it was relocated in 1989 to its present location constructed by Josef Berhard and Rudolf Schwarz in 1953-54. The plain, red-brick Schwarz-Bernhard building stands on the site of a former Conventual monastery, whose shape is still traced by the ground plan and the square inner courtyard. The late-Gothic Minoritenkirche on the south side still survives. The inner courtyard wall on the north side has been almost entirely glazed, acting as a "shop window" for the museum.

Today thousands of tourists visit the museum to see its large collection of over 100,000 items of European applied art from the 10th century to the present which is arranged chronologically by era and includes furniture, decorative carpets, small sculptures, dining utensils, luxury items, and decorative objects. For the sake of preservation, the textile collection is mostly displayed only in short-term special exhibitions. Museum of Applied Art is specifically known for its modern design collections. In one of the wings, you will find a collection of exquisite designs created in 2008 by Vitra Design Museum in Weil am Rhein. This stunning collection includes cameras, televisions, telephones, lamps, furniture and household items displayed and presented in a chronological and thematic manner. All pieces are created by popular designers like Frank Lloyd Wright, Dieter Rams, Ray Eames, Joe Colombo, Ettore Sottsass, and Philippe Starck.

Why You Should Visit:
Decorative arts to die for, including ceramics, glass, silver, jewelry, pottery, micro-mosaics, inlay, iconography, wood-carving, and furniture.

Tip:
You can touch the pieces, which really enhances the experience.
There is also a sweet cafe in the internal courtyard with its fountain.