Founded in 1903 as the Germanic Museum, the Busch-Reisinger Museum is the only museum in North America dedicated to the study of art from the German-speaking countries of central and northern Europe in all media and in all periods. Its holdings include significant works of Austrian Secession art, German expressionism, 1920s abstraction, and material related to the Bauhaus. Other strengths include late medieval sculpture and 18th-century art.
The museum also holds noteworthy postwar and contemporary art from German-speaking Europe, including works by Georg Baselitz, Anselm Kiefer, and Gerhard Richter, as well as one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of works by Joseph Beuys.