'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) 

Berlin Architecture in Photos

We've done a lot of wandering around the streets of Berlin in the last 7 months and along the way we've taken quite a few photos of the buildings around town. There are loads of interesting buildings dotted around the city and we've enjoyed just wandering around and discovering new places. Here is a collection of a few of our favourite architectural photos we've collected over the last few months.

Heilig Kreuz Kirche (Holy Cross Church) kreuzberg

A beautiful promenade of houses in central Berlin

An interesting residential building in Kreuzberg

Otto Bock Science Center near Potsdamer Platz

The Nhow Hotel on the river Spree

The Kino International on Karl-Marx-Allee

The Humbolt Box on Museum Island

Berlin  Dom Cathedral

The Berlin TV Tower

The Kanzleramts Building as seen from the Bundestag building

Box window design in Pankow

Curvy balconies in Prenzlauer Berg

A  beautiful façade in Prenzlauer Berg

The Southern Spree Riverfront

The Southern Spree Riverfront buildings

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 Computer Spiele Museum

Here is our first ever post from a guest writer. James Kelly, a friend of mine, came to visit us in Berlin earlier in the year. James is an extremely talented musician, video producer and designer. You should check out his fantastic acoustic guitar music at James Kelly Music and his music production company at Eskimotion. Also, here is a link to one of my favourite acoustic tracks, Lost.    

This is his review of the Computer Spiele Museum (Computer Games Museum) on Karl-Marx-Allee. It definitely sounds like it's worth a visit if you enjoy gaming and have a few hours to spare in Berlin. Thanks James!

During my very brief, 36 hour whirlwind tour of Berlin I managed to head down to the Computer Spiele Museum on Karl-Marx-Allee. I’d heard about this place through a friend who thought it would be right up my street and he wasn’t wrong! 

The museum was extremely easy to get to. I took the walk from Frankfurter Tor which was about 10-15 minutes but if you’re lazy or short of time then you can get off at U-Bahn at Weberwiese and you’re about 1 minute away. 

On arrival, the staff were very pleasant and did speak English but by then I’d become fluent in sheepishly saying “Eins bitte. Dankeschön” so it was all good. 

From the moment I arrived I knew I was going to have a good time. The museum captures the first 60 years of gaming history. From the mythically-claimed first ever computer game The Nimrod to present day 3D gaming and everything interesting in between (including all the obvious ones you would expect to see such as Pong, Donkey Kong, Space Invaders and many more).



Classic Pong

It was brilliantly interactive with many exhibits allowing you to play on very wide variety of historical games and installations. All the videos within the museum were controlled by these retro joysticks, which was a good idea but the system was a bit temperamental at times. The gaming milestones wall was very cleverly put together and navigated through a joystick that controlled a lazer crosshair on the wall. Very cool in a geeky sort of way and another example that this museum hadn’t just been thrown together at the last minute as a lot of creative thought had gone into its presentation. 

The Gaming Milestone Wall



I was genuinely interested in everything there as both a gaming geek and on a professional level as part of my work too. I could have spent another few hours watching all the videos and playing games but time was against me. I unfortunately didn’t get chance to see and play everything there including having a go on the infamous Painstation device which looked very intriguing. 



Overall it was an excellent 2-3 hours spent, which could have easily been 3-4 if time allowed. Satisfyingly interactive, educational on a number of levels and very well presented. It's pretty cheap at 8€ per ticket too (15€ for a family ticket). If you’re into games on any sort of level it’s well worth a visit. 


More information about the museum: 


Location: Karl-Marx Allee, 93a 10243, Berlin


Opening Times: Every day (except Tuesdays) from 10am - 8pm

Ticket Prices:
Regular - 8€  
Reduced - 5€
Family - 15
Book tickets and tours via their hotline: +49 30 6098 8577

Closest Transport links:
U-Bahn - (U5) Weberwiese
S-Bahn - Ostbahnhof
Bus - 350, 240 (Weberwiese)


For more details about the museum visit their website.