Main information:

House of Photography – Dr. Robert-Gerlich-Museum

The House of Photography was founded in 1983 as the photography museum of the town of Burghausen and is located in the Rentmeisterstock, the former tax office building (fifth courtyard) at the beginning of the castle complex. In 1998 it was renamed after its founder and head of many years, Dr Robert Gerlich.

The collection has four main themes:

The history of photography: historical pictures and equipment

This department shows the history of photography with unique early exhibits such as daguerreotypes and ambrotypes and a comprehensive collection documenting the history of cameras with over 600 cameras from all periods and areas of use. Among the highlights are a French daguerreotype camera dating from 1842 and the space camera Hasselblad 500 EL/70.

Historical views of Burghausen

This department contains views of Burghausen and pictures of streets and buildings that no longer exist. There are also interesting aerial views and pictures of particular events such as the catastrophic floods in the last two centuries, the fire of 1863 and the lake festival on the Wöhrsee. Further rooms illustrate the life of past Burghausen citizens with portraits and family and wedding photos.

Gallery of contemporary photography

In this gallery which was opened in 2002, original works by over 40 internationally known photographers are shown, which all from the gallery’s own collection. They represent the various applications of photography, with impressive works from areas such as society, New Objectivity, subjective photography, portraits, fashion, advertising and photo journalism.

Special exhibitions

An important element of the museum’s work is special exhibitions, which illustrate the various approaches to artistic photography. The exhibitions are designed to present not only established photographers or historical names, but also the current work of young, contemporary photographers.

© Text: House of Photography

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