It was founded by Evelyn Ortner (1944 - 1997). The native of Vorarlberg came to Merano in 1968 and operated a second-hand store here. She had already been passionate about collecting since her youth, especially clothing, accessories, and everyday items. In Merano, Evelyn Ortner was able to turn her passion into a profession and became a knowledgeable expert in costume history and textiles. From the beginning, however, she pursued the goal of not only tracing the history of fashion with her collection, but also presenting the history of women, or history from the perspective of women, far beyond that.
In 1988, she privately and on her own initiative founded her "Museum for Clothing and Trinkets" under the arcades in Merano. This small museum quickly became a recognized institution in Merano. With historical fashion shows, annual special exhibitions, traveling exhibitions, and many other activities, Ortner repeatedly attracted attention and soon made her museum known beyond the borders of South Tyrol.
In 1993, the association "Frauenmuseum - Die Frau im Wandel der Zeit" was founded with Evelyn Ortner as managing director and took over the management of the museum. The collection grew steadily, which eventually made it necessary to move to new premises. Evelyn Ortner died in 1997 of her cancer, but her museum continued to thrive. Under the new name "Frauenmuseum Evelyn Ortner" it moved to the new address at Kornplatz, where it has developed into a versatile place of encounter and interdisciplinary discourse.
The Women's Museum Merano is open all year round and has specialized in its permanent exhibition, especially in the cultural and everyday history from a female perspective. The focus is on the representation of women's images and roles from the 19th century to the present day, based on clothing and accessories, books, everyday objects, and documents. The collection of the Women's Museum is so extensive that the permanent exhibition is changed every few years. In addition, there are regular special exhibitions and numerous events on women's and gender-relevant topics.
A highly interesting piece of cultural history - a visit to the Women's Museum Merano is definitely worth it!
A tip from the cultural expert Sepp from South Tyrol
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