Ultramarine Reverie: Yves Klein’s Mystical Murals at Gelsenkirchen Music Theatre

Last spring, I revisited my earliest artistic memory: stepping into Werner Ruhnau’s Music Theatre in Gelsenkirchen and feeling the air itself turn blue. Yves Klein’s two monumental wall reliefs—each nearly 7 × 20 meters—rise like velvety monoliths of International Klein Blue, their surfaces pressed with thousands of sea sponges that catch the theatre’s natural light and soft shadows. In that hushed space, where the orchestra tunes and the house lights dim, you don’t just see colour—you enter it.

Architect and artist Werner Ruhnau was the architect of this very special theatre. Further artists commissioned were Paul Adams, Paul Dierkes, Norbert Kricke and Jean Tinguely.

Not surprisingly, this spectacular building has been listed as a protected monument since 1997.

Architecture & collaboration

Designed by architect Werner Ruhnau, the Musiktheater im Revier opened in 1959 as a bold experiment in integrated art and architecture. Rather than a mere percent-for-art commission, Ruhnau invited a circle of artists—Yves Klein, Robert Adams, Paul Dierkes, Norbert Kricke and Jean Tinguely—to shape every surface into an immersive, abstract environment . Declared a protected monument in 1997, the theatre remains a landmark of mid-century daring.

Velvet texture, abstract depth

Klein’s reliefs are not illustrations of ocean waves, but undulating, abstract forms that speak of pure spatial color. Dense pigment mixed with binder and embedded sea sponges yields a mysterious velvety softness, so tactile you half expect your fingertips to sink in. This is color as architecture—walls that breathe, expand, and contract with the shifting daylight, inviting you to pause and simply be enveloped.

A personal connection

Here’s a twist of fate I only learned later: my father, only 17 at the time, was apprenticing within these very walls—just as Klein was pressing those sponges into pigment. He marveled at the velvety relief. I remember that moment when he told us—how I nearly died of delight! His youthful pride in working on such a prestigious project, and my mother’s visionary encouragement of my artistic path, sparked a family love for architecture and beauty that still guides me today.

Why it matters to me

If you’re drawn to spaces that transcend mere decoration, and crave artwork that stirs both heart and imagination, let’s dream together. Whether through mural installations, textured finishes, or whisper-thin gilding, we’ll create a world of mystery and wonder on your walls.

— Stefanie Schuessler