If you follow the Rhine southwards, you will come across a real open-air gallery on the Stresemann-Ufer: the Rheinufergalerie, where a total of ten sculptures from five decades line the promenade between Fischtorplatz and Templertor.

The sculptures in the Rheinufergalerie are by modern artists and cover a wide spectrum of artistic styles: from figurative and abstract to animal and human representations to geometry and concretion. Small plaques embedded in the path provide information about the artists and the years in which the works were created, while sections of lawn and park benches invite visitors to rest and linger.

Two information pillars at Fischtorplatz and Templertor explain the ten works of art in the Rhine River Gallery.

Artworks are also located at other points along the banks of the Rhine—for example, in front of Mainz City Hall and the Hyatt Regency Mainz hotel—but these are not officially part of the Rhine River Gallery.

Since the 1960s, cities and municipalities have increasingly incorporated works of art and artistic creations into their urban planning. At that time, the state capital of Mainz also acquired works by local artists or artists with ties to Mainz and decided to display all of the works in the Rheinufergalerie on the Stresemann-Ufer and to gradually expand the collection.

The open-air gallery was inaugurated on November 13, 1969, with the installation of Philipp Harth's "Schreitender Tiger" (Walking Tiger) in memory of the Mainz sculptor who had died a year earlier. This was followed in 1970 by Emy Roeder's "Stehende Tripolitanerin" (Standing Tripolitan Woman) and Karlheinz Krause's "Feuervogel" (Firebird). Wilhelm Loth's "Stürzende Figur" (Falling Figure) was installed in 1971 as the first abstract sculpture. In 1972, the state capital acquired three constructivist works: Gerlinde Beck's "Stele," Friedrich Gräsel's "ACIX Doppelbogen" (ACIX Double Arch), and Hans Nagel's "E 21," which were installed as a group. Wulf Kirschner's iron sculpture "Hommage à Gutenberg" was inaugurated in 1988 – initially as the last work of art in the Rheinufergalerie. At the beginning of the 1990s, the state capital's limited acquisition budget no longer allowed for further purchases. In addition, construction work on Fort Malakoff, the Malakoff Terraces, and the Hyatt Regency Mainz Hotel changed the appearance of the Rhine riverbank at this location. Expanding the gallery seemed very unfavorable at that time.

At the end of the 1990s, the state capital then launched the "Rheinufer Forum," which dealt with the urban redevelopment of the entire length of the Rhine riverbank and divided it into individual sections. One of the forum's recommendations was to leave the existing art in the design of the public space. The Rhine River Gallery was to be preserved and expanded in any case. However, the ideas of the Rhine River Forum have so far only been implemented as planned at the level of the castle.

In 2012, the Department of Culture and Mainz Building Management began cleaning and restoring the artworks that had been damaged by the weather. In addition, all artworks were given a new coating that is scratch-resistant and graffiti-resistant as far as possible. This process was completed with the reinstallation of the restored "Firebird" in late summer 2013.

A year later, the permanent open-air exhibition was finally expanded to include the work "VITA" by renowned sculptor Herbert Mehler. A Mainz couple donated the abstract work to the Rhine River Gallery, which was installed near Emy Roeder's "Standing Tripolitan Woman" with the support of the Karrié company.

The most recent addition to the Rheinufergalerie was made in 2023 with the installation of a sculpture from the "Vertical Highways" series by Mainz-born and internationally renowned artist Bettina Pousttchi. This places the oldest and newest works of art directly opposite each other in an exciting dialogue.