'Visions of Modernity' Temporary Exhibition

Yesterday we went over to the Deutsche Guggenheim gallery on Unter den Linden to check out the temporary exhibition, Visions of Modernity.

From Impressionism and Modernism this selection of art has been brought together from the Guggenheim Foundation Collections. It's been on since November but it's well worth a visit if you like modern art and the avante-guarde.

There is a nice selection of paintings form Van Gogh and Picasso, Cézanne and Kandinsky among others. 

Kandinski's 'Decisive Rose'

It's only on until the 17th of February so make sure you go this week to take a look.

Cost: 

4€ per adult

Website: 

deutsche-guggenheim.de    

Address: 

Deutsche+Guggenheim 

Unter den Linden 13/15

10117

Berlin

Closest U-Bahn:

Französische Strasse (line 6) 

Kreuzberg in Pictures: Episode Four

In this section of Explorer Berlin we share photos we took from our travels around Kreuzberg. Our theme this edition is the street art that can be found in the area. 

There is just so much street art in Kreuzberg. Every corner you turn there is a new and inventive piece of grafitti waiting for you. After doing a little research into the murals I found out that two murals pictured in this blog are by an artist called Blu. AndBerlin did a blog about his work earlier in the year if you want to find out a little more about Blu.  

As for the other two pieces I don't know who created them. Do you?

Enjoy the photos and if you get chance, I recommend visiting in person.  

Check out some more street art photos on our facebook page. 

What do you think of graffiti in Kreuzberg?

Do you think it is an eyesore or art?

Begging businessman on Waldemarstrasse

This was hanging from underneath the Oberbaumbrüke a few months ago!

Mural by Blu on Cuvrystraße

Mural by Blu on Oberbaumstrasse

Berlin Tourism for Dummies: The East Side Gallery

If you haven't already visited Berlin then you have probably at least heard of The East Side Gallery. It's kind of essential to visit, even on a short trip to the city. The Gallery itself is situated on a 1.3 km long  (3/4 of a mile) stretch of the original Berlin Wall. It is the largest open air gallery in the world and home to over 100 'freedom' paintings from a host of international artists.

It was originally created in 1990 just after the fall of the Berlin Wall as an expression of freedom and hope for a new future. In the new unified Germany artists descended upon the east side of the famous barrier to tell the story of a divided then reunified Berlin, to preserve the memory of those who suffered under oppression and inhumanity and to show hope of a better world for all.

The wall runs along the eastern bank of the river Spree and is the 12-foot high canvas onto which the artwork is directly painted. It is the longest preserved part of the Berlin Wall that is still standing today. Although the gallery's original significance was a celebrated success, it's story is not without controversy and neglect.

After just two years the cheap paint was already showing signs of weathering and so the first restorative attempt took place. In 1996 the Künstlerinitiative was created by a group of artists in order to help raise donations and get sponsorship. The gallery had no public funding so they relied on donations to upkeep and maintain the art.
 

Covered in graffiti in 2005. "My God, Help Me to Survive This Deadly Love", Dimitrij Vrubel, Soviet Union

As time went on, not only was the appearance of the artwork deteriorating, but the concrete itself was also showing signs of decay. Originally built in 1961, the steel reinforcements within the concrete had started to corrode and the wall started to crumble. Restoration was not going to be easy or cheap. Over the years the gallery has also suffered from an over abundance of graffiti as you can see in the photo of the famous work above.

"Test the Rest", Birgit Kinder, East Germany

2006 saw another blow to the project as a 45-meter section was ripped down to make way for river access to the new O2 World arena site which was being built next door. In 2008 however, the city of Berlin along with the national lottery provided one million euros in funding to help restore the gallery and, by December 2009, 99 of the remaining 106 paintings had been restored (many by the artists who originally painted them).    

"Es geschah im November", Kani Alavi, Persia

"Politik ist die Fortsetzung des Krieges mit anderen Mitteln", Carsten Jost, Ulrike Steglich, East Berlin

I've walked along the stretch of the gallery quite a few times, mainly to bring new visitors to see it. Some of the art is simple, some provocative. Some pieces are dark and symbolic whilst others are bright and celebratory. Although it might not be as powerful a symbol as it would have been in its heyday I think that you can still learn something from it and hear the common international voice towards peace and understanding.

Tolerance, Mary Mackey, USA

Five facts about the East Side Gallery: 

01 - The East Side Gallery was officially opened on the 28th Septemeber 1990. 

02 - 118 artists from 21 countries participated in the project in 1990.

03 - Restoration of parts of the concrete wall was undertaken in 2002.

04 - In the year 2000 about a third of the wall was restored and repainted.

05 - In 2009 74 of the original artists helped restore their own work.     

The East Side Gallery is located between the Ostbahnhof train station and the Oberbaumbrüke. There is no cost to see the gallery and you can visit it at any time day or night.

Some interesting links and articles about the East Side Gallery:
The Künstlerinitiative
Berlin Tourist Guide: East Side Gallery (with a photo gallery)
The Telegraph: Berlin Wall anniversary: East Side Gallery restored to state twenty years ago.
An East Side Gallery Timeline. 

Our new Berlin Tourism for Dummies section aims to give quick introductions to some of the main sights to see in Berlin. We hope it is helpful to those of you planning a trip to the city.     

Museum Island - Five Museums, One Place

The Museum Island, in the central Mitte district of Berlin, is a very pleasant area of the city and is home to, as you may have guessed, some of the major international museums in Germany. It is not actually a real island. It is located where the Spree branches off in two directions with one smaller branch of the Spree running down the west side and the main river down the east. (In fact, its kind of complicated to explain in words but easier if you see it on a map - "googlemap it" to see for yourself what I mean!)  

The 'island' itself was declared an UNESCO world heritage site in 1999 and the five museums located in this area contain an impressive collection of art and artifacts from many different cultures and ages. Amongst the collection are pieces from Egyptian, Persian, European, Middle Eastern and, obviously, Prussian origin, a collection of 19th century art as well as some reconstructed historic buildings. 

There are plenty of interesting things to see inside the museums and galleries including a bust of 

the Egyptian Queen, Nefertiti, the Berliner Goldhut (or Berlin Gold Hat) and the Ishtar Gate of Babylon. There are a number of options for entrance to the museums including island day tickets, tourist passes, group tickets and guided tours. 

When we visited we decided to buy the day ticket which gives you access to all 5 museums for the whole day and includes a free audio guide in the museums. The island day pass is a good option if you have the whole day free and only have a short time in the city. You'll have to get up early to take advantage of access to all museums though as it is possible to spend at least a morning or afternoon in just one of the museums. Another option is a three-day museum pass which might suit you more if you prefer to take your time looking round museums. 

However, you don't have to go into the museums at all to enjoy the island. On a nice day it is worth just strolling around the island. The buildings themselves are interesting to look at and there are many sculptures around the gardens and green areas to relax in and have a picnic. 

Of course, you won't miss the sight of Der Berliner Dom or the Berlin Cathedral which is also on the island. In fact, It's probably going to be one of your first impressions of the site as it is dominates the southern end of the island. 

The Museum Island is a great day out in Berlin and there are plenty of terraces and restaurants nearby to complete a touristic day in Berlin. 

You can find out more information about the museums on the island on the State Museum Website as well as on Berlin.de which has lots of useful information for tourists in English.     

'The Art of The Real": David Lynch Conference

At the end of June we decided to head over to the David Lynch Conference, 'The Art of The Real', which took place at The Roter Salon in the Volksbühne in Rosa-Luxemburg Platz. The conference was special as it was the first ever academic event in Europe to focus on the career and films of David Lynch. Being big David Lynch fans ourselves, we were looking forward to finding out more about him and his work. 

The conference itself took place over three days with the majority of events in English. It featured an international crowd of renowned researchers and academics who focused on psychoanalysis, intermediality, genre composition and InterArt. It also featured a lot of people sporting David Lynch hairdos!

In the beginning we were a little disheartened because we were hoping to hear more about the career of Lynch and not just specialists psycho-analysing his films and career. In fact, for us, it was a little bit too methodical how the meanings of aspects of his work were broken down. Sometimes the talks were a little long too. We forgave the organisers though as they supplied free and glorious pretzels and fruit during the breaks. We don't have any pictures of the fantastic pretzels as we were way too involved in eating them. We can assure you it was well worth the visit.   

In total we saw around a day and a half of the conference and our favourite section was where the shorts about and by Lynch were aired. As seen above, one of the shorts was 'The Alphabet' and there was also a very interesting documentary which focused on his life as a painter, craftsman and musician which gave us a fresh perspective about this often misunderstood artist.    

People watching an interview with Lynch

In fact, during the event, we did discover something. People who are too specialist about his work sometimes destroy the spark by deconstructing too deeply. Although the talks were varied and interesting, people will always see his world through different eyes and, for us, the beauty of Lynch's art is that we don't necessarily understand exactly what he's going on about! Maybe only Lynch himself will ever completely understand his work (and, according to the interview we saw, even he doesn't know why he films some of the things he does!). 

One of the fun things we learnt about him during the conference is that he never likes talking about his motivation or the meanings behind his art because he cannot express himself as well in words as he can through his art. It's a good job he didn't decide to be a writer then!             

Open Air Gallery 2012

On Sunday we accidentally wandered into the Open Air Gallery which was taking place on Oberbaümbruke (the bridge between the districts of Kreuzberg and Friedrichshain).

The bridge had been closed to traffic and the road lined with stands displaying artist's paintings, sculptures and photographs for sale.

Along with a variety of different types of art stands there was a paper strip running down in the middle of the road. There were pots of paint and brushes dotted along so that members of the public could add their own artistic touch to the communal painting. And, of course, there was a bar to buy a refreshing beer, wine or snack (I don't think I've seen any event in Germany that doesn't involve beer). 

Our attention, however, was drawn away from the center of activity to an artist displaying his art just off the bridge. His paintings captured our attention and we approached to find out more. Maxamillion arrived in Berlin a few weeks ago from Austria and is currently living in the squat village on the banks of the Spree. 

Artist "Maxamillion"

Some themes he talked about in his art-work include perception, our connection to the universe, consciousness and the universal spiral. After a chat with Maxamillion, we decided to buy some prints. You can find out more about him on his website: maxamillionpossibilities.com

Maxamillion's art work

Here are some more photos of the Open Air Gallery 2012.

If you missed out on the event, don't worry as you will have another chance this year

The Open Air Gallery returns to Oberbaümbruke on Sunday 5th August from 10am - 10pm. 

For more information visit their website (in German).