Kolumba Museum Architecture

The Kolumba is the art museum of the Archdiocese of Cologne, located at Kolumbastraße 4 in the Neumarktviertel of Altstadt-Nord, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The building, designed by the Swiss architect Peter Zumthor and opened in 2007, rises from the ruins of the late Gothic church of St. Kolumba and incorporates the remains of the old walls into a modern structure. Its exterior is clad in a light grey, elongated brick, and the facade contains perforated brickwork that lets filtered daylight into the galleries and creates patterns of light and shadow. For architectural photographers the appeal is texture, proportion and the contrast between ruin and modern brick. Mid-morning gives good natural light on the facade, and overcast conditions reduce glare on the brick while keeping detail. The surrounding street is narrow, so wide-angle lenses are needed for the exterior, and the filtered daylight within makes interior shots delicate. Photography rules inside the museum can change and may restrict photographs or flash, so permission should be confirmed on the museum website at kolumba.de or at the desk before taking pictures. Admission is charged for the galleries, and exterior photography from the street is free. The museum is typically quiet, with modest visitor numbers, so there is little competition for positions, and tripods are not appropriate inside and may not be permitted. Drones are restricted in the city centre. A standard zoom or wide-angle prime handles the interior and facade, and flash should not be used. Restrooms are available in the museum and cafes around Neumarkt and Schildergasse are a short walk away.