The Temporary Gallery was founded in December 2008, initially under the name "Rental Gallery" - based on the model of a rental gallery - in the legal form of a registered association, on the initiative of gallery owners Christian Nagel and Thomas Rehbein as well as Art Cologne director Daniel Hug. The aim was to strengthen Cologne's art market, which was increasingly in decline at the time, by providing additional exhibition space for international art galleries. In April 2009, the Rental Gallery moved into an industrial hall in the centre of Cologne and began its operations. However, the model of a rental gallery did not prevail at the Cologne location: its name changed to "Temporary Gallery", and at the beginning of 2012 it ceased to operate as a rental gallery.
In September 2012, the Temporary Gallery reopened, now in its original form as a non-profit art association: exhibition, mediation and cooperation became the cornerstones of its programme, its special focus - the intersection of contemporary artistic and curatorial practice and theory, as well as their discourse and embedding in a wider cultural historical, scientific and social context. In 2013, the Temporary Gallery emerged as the winner of a public competition organised by the City of Cologne for a new "Centre for Contemporary Art" and started to receive institutional support from the City. In addition to solo and group exhibitions, lecture and film series, and collaborations with guest curators and universities, it also started to offer individual project consultations. In 2018, the Temporary Gallery was awarded the ADKV-ART COLOGNE Prize.
The Temporary Gallery was directed by Daniel Müller (2009) and Caroline Nathusius (2010-2011). From 2012-2018, Regina Barunke was the artistic and managing director. Since January 2019, the institution is directed by Aneta Rostkowska.
Association
Board
Thomas Rehbein, 1. Chairman
Meyer Voggenreiter, 2. Chairman
Lilian Haberer, Treasurer
Ilka Becker
Member
ADKV Arbeitsgemeinschaft deutscher Kunstvereine
medienwerk.nrw
AIC Art Initiatives Cologne
CIMAM
List of funders and supporters since 2012
Structural funding und support
Cultural Office of the City of Cologne
Deltax contemporary, Wirtschafts- und Steuerberatungsgesellschaft mbH
Programme funding
AC/E - Acción Cultural Española
Academy of the Arts of the World
British Council
Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation
Consulate General of the Netherlands
Creative Scotland
Culture Ireland
Danish Arts Foundation
Embassy of the Netherlands in Berlin
Embassy of Norway in Berlin
Embassy of Portugal / Instituto Camões
Förderprogramm der Sparkasse KölnBonn, supervised by the SK Stiftung Kultur
Goethe-Institut Deutschland
Hypo-Kulturstiftung
Institut français
Japan Foundation
Königlich Norwegische Botschaft
Kunststiftung NRW
LVR Landschaftsverband Rheinland
Ministry of Family, Children, Youth, Culture and Sport of North Rhine-Westphalia (until 2017)
Ministry of Culture and Science of North Rhine-Westphalia (since 2017)
Mondriaan Fonds
NRW KULTURsekretariat
OCA Office for Contemporary Art
PERSPEKTIVE - Fund for Contemporary Art and Architecture
RheinEnergie Stiftung Kultur
Stiftung Kunstfonds
Sponsoring and further support
Boucherie–Design
Brandl Kunsttransporte
Farbanalyse
Gaffel Kölsch
Hotel Chelsea