When does the special exhibition run?

The exhibition will be on view at Amberg City Museum from 26.04.2026 to 10.01.2027.

How much does entry cost?

Entry to the city gallery is free. Regular admission prices apply to the city museum; the special tour costs €9.50 including museum admission.

Are there tours through the exhibition?

Yes, there are public tours, art snacks, group tours, and inclusive formats such as a telephone tour and tours in German sign language.

Is the museum barrier-free?

Parts of the building are accessible with limitations; the ground floor is architecturally barrier-free. For detailed information, the museum's visitor information is recommended.

What are the opening hours?

The City Museum and the City Gallery are open Tuesday to Friday from 11 AM to 4 PM, and Saturday and Sunday from 11 AM to 5 PM. The building is closed on Mondays.

Can I find more information or tickets online?

Yes, Amberg City Museum provides current information, dates, and online tickets through its official website.

Prechtl's visual world in Amberg: Heads, signs, stories, and art history

Name: Heads. Times. History(ies). Michael Mathias Prechtl on his 100th birthday
Start: 2026-04-26T13:00:00+02:00
End: 2027-01-10T18:00:00+01:00
Location: Stadtmuseum Amberg

Michael Mathias Prechtl in Amberg: A jubilee exhibition with clarity and visual power

The Amberg City Museum dedicates a special exhibition to Michael Mathias Prechtl on his 100th birthday, shedding new light on the life, work, and influence of one of the most distinctive German drawers, painters, and illustrators of the 20th century. Works from his estate, loans from private collections, and pieces that have not been publicly displayed in Amberg for a long time will be shown.

An artist between drawing, painting, and illustration

Prechtl, born in Amberg in 1926, developed a distinctive visual language that intertwines precise lines, historical allusion, and pointed narrative art. He gained fame with works for international media such as The New York Times and Der Spiegel, while his oeuvre remains deeply rooted in German art and cultural history. His art combines scholarly depth with lightness, critical observation with formal elegance.

Works that condense stories

The exhibition highlights those motifs for which Prechtl became famous: heads, figures, literary references, historical scenes, and images with significant symbolic density. Among other things, sheets and paintings that draw attention to his graphic beginnings, painting, ceramics, and large-format commissions are on display. Particularly insightful are the references to Dürer, to the city's history, and to Prechtl's engagement with popular culture.

Amberg as the starting point of an international career

The exhibition tells not only of an artist of national standing but also of a life path from the Upper Palatinate that begins in Amberg and extends beyond Nuremberg and the West German art scene. This connection of origin, the exile of memory, and artistic independence gives the exhibition its unique tension. Amberg becomes a place of reunion with a body of work that takes people as seriously as it does the storytelling of images.

Supporting program, tours, and cultural education

Alongside this, the City Museum offers a diverse program with public tours, art snacks, lectures, readings, workshops, family activities, and inclusive formats such as a telephone tour and tours in German sign language. The exhibition thus becomes not only a place of viewing but also of exchange and cultural education. Those who wish to experience art history in a lively manner will find contextualization and discussion in a harmonious connection here.

Exhibition atmosphere and visitor experience

In the historical building of the City Museum, Prechtl's work unfolds an atmosphere of concentrated attention. The exhibition invites an aesthetic experience in which lines, colors, and compositions resonate in space and gradually sharpen the eye. The mixture of original works, rarely shown sheets, and curatorial depth makes the tour an intense art experience.

Conclusion: This special exhibition impressively illustrates why Michael Mathias Prechtl is considered one of the most independent voices of German art after 1945. Anyone interested in drawing, illustration, painting, and art historical contexts should not miss this exhibition in Amberg.