In 1984 Prof. Dr. h.c. mult. Berthold Beitz, who served as Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen und Halbach-Stiftung until his death in 2013, founded the Kulturstiftung Ruhr (Ruhr Cultural Foundation). He appointed the long-time director of the Museum Folkwang in Essen, Prof. Dr. Paul Vogt, as Managing Director, a post he held until 2010.

For its major international exhibitions, the Kulturstiftung Ruhr selects art-historical and cultural-historical subjects.