Ikonenmuseum Frankfurt

This guide to the Ikonenmuseum Frankfurt begins inside a former Teutonic Knights refectory, granted to the order by Emperor Frederick II in the 1220s, and its Baroque hall's survival through war and ruin. It traces how architect Oswald Matthias Ungers converted the space in 1990, building an entirely freestanding gallery structure that never touches the historic walls, and how a 2020-21 renovation pushed that idea further with a slightly rotated ceiling grid. You'll notice the deliberately matte, skin-like surfaces designed not to distract from what's on display.