This obscure museum ostensibly traces German design history from the early 20th century to today, but actually feels more like a cross between a cabinet of curiosities and a flea market. In the permanent collection, wood-framed glass cabinets are crammed open-storage-style with a century's worth of knick-knacks, from detergent boxes and cigarette cases to more bizarre items such as a spherical washing machine, 1920s inflation money and a swastika-adorned mug.
The collection is based on the archive of the Deutscher Werkbund (German Work Federation), an association of artists, architects, designers and industrialists formed in 1907 to integrate traditional crafts and industrial mass-production techniques. It was an important precursor of the 1920s Bauhaus movement. Temporary exhibits zero in on specific themes such as the 'Eroticism of Things' or 'Graphic Design in East Germany'.