A small nucleus of the collection consists of fashion and design objects. Over 54 works are the result of commissions by Mudam for its distinctive architectural context. The constitution of the collection traces back to the first acquisitions for the museum in the 1990s, the creation of the Museum of Modern Art Grand-Duc Jean Foundation in 1998, and the opening of the Museum in 2006. While the decade of the 1960s serves as an historic point of reference for contemporary art, the majority of works in the collection date from 1989 to the present. One of the few exceptions to this historical span is the ensemble of furniture for the Paimio Sanatorium, designed between 1930 and 1933 by the architect Alvar Aalto, and acquired in 2000.

The scientific committee for the Mudam Collection is composed of Myriam Ben Salah (Executive Director and Chief Curator of The Renaissance Society in Chicago), Manuel Borja-Villel (Former Director of the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia in Madrid), Frances Morris (Former Director of Tate Modern in London), and Adam Szymczyk (Artistic Director of documenta 14 and Curator at large at Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam). The committee is presided by Mudam director, Bettina Steinbrügge.