Kunstmuseum Magdeburg is hosting a monumental inflatable Northern White rhinoceros within its Romanesque naves as part of an ongoing exhibition. At 17 meters wide and 9 meters tall, the work represents the latest installation by Berlin-based artist Itamar Gov. Importantly, the exhibition, titled The Rhinoceros in the Room, runs through July 5. However, the sculpture does more than occupy the space, as it actively reshapes how visitors navigate the medieval structure. As a result, the building’s sharp stone geometry contrasts with the rounded, soft form of the rhinoceros and redirects circulation across the nave.
A thirty-foot rhino sculpture towers inside the Kunstmuseum Magdeburg, transforming the museum’s interior with a dramatic large-scale contemporary installation. 
A thirty-foot rhino sculpture towers inside the Kunstmuseum Magdeburg, transforming the museum’s interior with a dramatic large-scale contemporary installation.
Sound collaboration adds spatial and emotional depth
In addition, a multi-channel musical composition accompanies the installation. Specifically, the sound work was created in collaboration with cellist Bruno Delepaire of the Berliner Philharmoniker. Consequently, eight cellos and a vocalist drift between lullaby-like passages and darker tonal movements above the sculpture. Moreover, the layered sound design reinforces the physical scale of the artwork and amplifies the spatial experience for visitors.
A thirty-foot rhino sculpture towers inside the Kunstmuseum Magdeburg, transforming the museum’s interior with a dramatic large-scale contemporary installation. 
A thirty-foot rhino sculpture towers inside the Kunstmuseum Magdeburg, transforming the museum’s interior with a dramatic large-scale contemporary installation.
Cultural symbolism and broader interpretive framing
At the same time, the installation positions the rhinoceros between monumentality and apparent weightlessness. Furthermore, the work draws on the animal’s complex symbolic history in Europe, linking sensitivity and potential violence to power and dominion. Ultimately, the presentation reflects how human fascination and captivity nearly pushed the species toward extinction, while reframing the museum’s historic architecture through a contemporary cultural lens.