The Nolde Museum Seebüll preserves not only the artistic legacy of Emil Nolde, but also his original wish to create a vibrant place of art and encounter. The Seebüll Ada and Emil Nolde Foundation, established by testamentary disposition of the artist couple, is the institution that runs the museum and administers the extensive estate. As an independent institution, it enables international exhibitions, sustainable educational work and the care of the authentic place of life and creation in Seebüll. The board of trustees and the management jointly ensure the long‑term fulfilment of this cultural mission.
About us
Colour diversity in Nolde’s living spaces
Foundation
Early on, Emil Nolde was moved by the idea of creating a permanent home for his work – an “independent, free foundation” that would be accessible to the public. Together with his wife Ada, he decreed in his will the establishment of the Seebüll Ada and Emil Nolde Foundation.
The legacy of Emil Nolde
In the preamble to his will, Nolde wrote: “All European cities and large cities have their museums full of thousands of artworks from old and new times. This has, for many people, its great beauty and also the disadvantage of too much being offered and of fatigue. […] Quite in contrast to this, in our small homestead in rural, simple nature, the people of our nearer homeland on the one hand and on the other hand – figuratively speaking – the searching, spiritual wanderer from all lands shall find a modest, special place where he is given some happiness and artistic‑spiritual recreation.”
The Nolde Foundation Seebüll administers the artist’s extensive estate, preserves his work for future generations and communicates it worldwide. Thanks to the rich collection of paintings, watercolours, “Unpainted Pictures”, drawings as well as graphic and craft works, the foundation presents annually changing exhibitions in Seebüll. In addition, it organises international exhibitions in cooperation with major museums and provides loans for selected presentations.
Curatorial Board
The Curatorial Board of the Seebüll Ada and Emil Nolde Foundation
As a governing body, the Curatorial Board of the Nolde Foundation Seebüll, founded on 12 June 1956, also serves as the Executive Board within the meaning of § 26 of the German Civil Code (BGB). Its responsibilities include, among other things, the administration of the foundation’s assets. At the same time, the Curatorial Board performs supervisory functions to ensure the continuous and sustainable fulfilment of the foundation’s purpose. The body consists of ten members. The first members of the Curatorial Board were personally appointed by Emil Nolde in his will. When a member leaves, the board supplements itself by co‑optation.
The Curatorial Board consists of:
- Dr. Hans-Joachim Throl (Chairman)
- Dr. Anke Nordemann-Schiffel (Deputy Chairwoman)
- Anne Blond
- Dr. Bettina Kaufmann
- Landrat Florian Lorenzen
- Dr. Ulrich Luckhardt
- Thomas Menke
- Dr. Christian Ring
- Michael Rohbeck
Honorary members of the Curatorial Board:
- Jolanthe Nolde (†)
- Prof. Karl Heinrich Girgensohn (†)
- Prof. Dr. Volker Scherliess (†)
- Prof. Hermann Gerlinger
- Fritz von Beyme
Curatorial Board Chairman Dr Hans‑Joachim Throl:
“It was Emil Nolde’s foremost wish that his foundation may exist freely and independently and remain shaped by his will for as long as possible. Ensuring this is and remains our obligation. In doing so, we make sure that many generations to come can enjoy the art of this important painter. And nowhere in the world is this better achieved than in Seebüll, where Nolde lived and worked. Here, his artistic work and the North Frisian landscape form a unity. Anyone who visits Seebüll cannot escape the magic of the place and simply understands the art of Emil Nolde better.”
Directorate
Dr. Christian Ring
Director
Christian Ring, born in 1976, worked for several years in a bank before studying art history and philosophy at the universities of Kassel and Bonn. From 2006 to 2008 he was a research associate at the Hamburger Kunsthalle and completed his doctorate in 2009 with a dissertation on Gustav Pauli and the Hamburger Kunsthalle. He then completed a research traineeship at the Museum Giersch in Frankfurt am Main from 2008 to 2010, where he subsequently worked as a research associate. From 2011 to 2013, Dr Ring served as Deputy Director of the Nolde Foundation Seebüll. Since 21 September 2013, he has been Director of the Seebüll Ada and Emil Nolde Foundation.
Dr. Tamara Schneider
Deputy Director
Tamara Schneider studied art history, German studies and English studies at the University of Kassel and completed her doctorate in art history on Japonism in Whistler’s early work. After working in various museums in Germany (including Kunsthalle Fridericianum, Kassel), she taught and conducted research for eight years as a lecturer at Japanese universities (including Doshisha University, Kyoto). Ms Schneider worked as a curator covering parental leave at the Ludwiggalerie Schloss Oberhausen before joining the Nolde Foundation Seebüll as a research curator in early 2024. Since February 2026 she has been Deputy Director.