PRINZHORN COLLECTION

The Prinzhorn Collection is a museum for art by people with exceptional psychological experiences. It is part of the Center for Psychosocial Medicine at Heidelberg University Hospital. Founded around 1900, the collection was significantly expanded after the First World War and thus forms an important historical starting point for today’s growing interest in so-called Outsider Art. The unique collection of around 40,000 works of visual art, texts and pieces of music from the period from 1825 to the present day, mainly from German-speaking countries, is constantly growing.

The museum’s mission is to contribute to the perception, communication and research of the aforementioned art and its creators, to give them back a voice and to promote the destigmatization and social inclusion of those who have experienced psychiatry. To this end, we develop our own exhibitions, accompanying events and publications that serve as role models for other institutions. We also support the growing global interest in art by people with psychiatric experience by sending exhibitions and loans to other institutions in Germany and abroad, and we promote research by external scientists and artists.