House of Münter in Murnau
This house, built in 1908 and also known as the “Russian House,” was where Gabriele Münter and Wassily Kandinsky spent their summers from August 1909 — when Gabriele bought it — until 1914, when World War I forced the Russian painter to return to his homeland. It was here that Kandinsky's ideas, which would become the foundation for the "Blue Rider" group and its eponymous almanac, were born. The house served as a permanent meeting place for avant-garde artists of the time: Franz Marc, Alexei Jawlensky, Marianne von Werefkin, August Macke, Paul Klee, and Arnold Schoenberg often visited.
After 1914, Münter lived here alone, and from 1931 — with her husband, the art historian and philosopher Johannes Eichner. In the cellar of the house, she kept Kandinsky's early paintings to save them from the Nazis. On February 19, 1957, on the occasion of her 80th birthday, she presented all the works to the Lenbachhaus Museum in Munich. They now form the core of the museum's collection and are its most important part.
From the windows of the house, one can admire charming views of the nearby landscape, especially the church and castle in the mountains — familiar motifs in Kandinsky's paintings. After major renovations in 1998–1999, the Münter House was opened to the public. It was restored to its original condition: the furniture, decorated by Kandinsky himself, was preserved, and the walls were adorned with small paintings and engravings by both artists. It was the artist's wish to make the house a memorial to herself and to Kandinsky.
Address:
Münter-Haus
Kottmullerallee 6
82418 Murnau
