The Berlin Gallery Scene

Wenessday 4th, 2009

On Wednesday our class concluded our tour of the Berlin gallery scene with Hans Koenings. According to the Roman Kräussl text we read in class, Germany hosts the highest number of art institutions per capita in the world, and Berlin, controlling 29% of the art market in Germany, ranks among the most artsy of European cities. Berlin holds a slight lead in the German art market, but Munich and other cities of German’s diverse regions remain close on Berlin’s heels. Germany’s federalist system results in a decentralized art market, meaning one city will never dominate the art landscape of Germany, creating a diverse and ever changing market.

We learned that the cheap real estate prices in Berlin make it possible for up and coming artists to establish themselves. Production Galleries, which are created by small groups of artists who pay pitch in to pay for a gallery’s rent as well as a curator to manage and promote it, are an easy way for artists to break into the Berlin art scene. Smaller galleries are constantly searching for new artists to promote; the low overhead and high popularity of the Berlin gallery scene allows these galleries a relative amount of flexibility. Production galleries however, are often short lived, exhibiting art for an average of two years; at which point most will close permanently, though the most successful galleries may continue on to become permanent art institutions. This system creates a sort of turnaround for the gallery scene in Berlin, constantly providing the city new galleries and bringing fresh faces and talents to the forefront of the German capital’s art scene.

Those established galleries which are able stay in business are constantly looking for new artists to host in their exhibitions, and many put on events and attend art fairs in search of new talent. This results in a packed calendar of art related events which keeps artists, curators and consumers busy throughout the year in Berlin. One of Berlin’s biggest art events is the “art forum berlin,” a four day international art show in late September; the 2009 forum attracted 40,000 collectors, museum directors, curators and art lovers from all over the world according to its website. Of course, events of this size involve much larger institutions than Berlin’s many small galleries, but these galleries still establish a presence at these enormous events.

Gleis 17

Thursday, October 29th

Our class made an excursion this week to what is now my favorite Holocaust related memorial in Berlin. Gleis 17 is a platform at the Grunewald S-Bahn stop where thousands of Jews were packed into train cars and taken to concentration camps like Auschwitz and Theresienstadt. The platform has been rebuilt as a memorial to those Jews who boarded trains there throughout the 1930’s and 40’s. The floor of the platform is made of steel grates upon which dates of departing trains are inscribed along with the number of Jews on each train and the concentration camp which would be their destination. When walking down the platform and reading this information, one can see that trains transporting thousands of Jews to their death departed from the platform on consecutive days. It is obvious that trains no longer run through this platform, as trees have sprouted and grown between the tracks, standing as symbols or measurements of the time that has passed since the platform was used. The memorial was constructed here in the wake of a grassroots movement of mourners who illegally visited the site, which had been closed off by Deutsche Bahn, to pay tribute to those who were murdered in the Holocaust. Hundreds of flowers were laid upon the tracks, and several floral wreaths were placed at one end – we learned later that these had been placed by a high ranking member of Israeli defense forces just a few days earlier. Gleis 17 is my favorite Holocaust memorial because of its original location; it reminded me of how efficiently the Nazi’s murdered millions of Jews during the Holocaust.

The Lives of Others

Monday, October 26^th

On Monday of this week I was required to lead class discussion regarding the German film; The Lives of Others. I was pleased to lead discussion this week because this film is one of my personal favorites. The Lives of Others tells the story of a German playwright living in East Germany and his secret writing and publishing of an essay about the skyrocketing suicide rate in the GDR. The main character Dreymann is unknowingly spied on constantly, via the bugging of his apartment, by a benevolent Stasi agent who decides not to report his offenses against the state to his Stasi superiors and thus saves Dreymann from imprisonment. It is not until the end of the GDR and indeed the end of the film that Dreymann discovers that he had been under intense surveillance for the duration of his conspiracy to writing the essay.

This image of a highly secretive and effective Stasi, which infiltrates and manipulates the lives of citizens, is far different from that depicted in Christa Wolf’s, What Remains. Once an informer herself, Wolf is familiar with the tactics used by the Stasi as well as those tactics which can protect her from further trouble with the GDR state, such as speaking in code when talking on the telephone. Unlike Dreymann who is ignorant of his being under surveillance, Wolf is fully aware of the three Stasi men in the car which is constantly parked in front of her house. Dreymann continues with his life and conspiracy thinking that his flat is the only safe place in the GDR where he can talk freely with his friends, while Wolf changes every aspect of her life in order to protect herself from the Stasi informers and spies placed all around her. Just like The Lives of Others, stories of the Stasi and its more or less secret operations make for a good story, however, first-hand accounts like Wolf’s really hit home reminding us that the Stasi was a very real institution which operated in East Germany’s recent past and effectively ruined lives.

Hooligans

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Sunday marked the date of Hertha BSC Berlin’s home football match against Wolfsburg. We attended the game as a class, and despite the 0-0 draw outcome, the game was an exciting and entertaining experience. Though last year both teams were highly competitive in the Bundesliga, neither team has performed very well this season. The Olympiadstation, a location of staggering history, holds a maximum of 74,000 fans, and only about half of the available seats were filled for the Sunday matchup.

Hertha does not hold a monopoly on Berlin football; Union Berlin, a football club originating in East Germany, is also popular. In addition, the 2009-2010 season marks the first year Union Berlin has competed in 2. Bundesliga, which is Germany’s second-best professional league. Making things more interesting, Hertha’s poor performance this year could mean a demotion to 2. Bundesliga, resulting in league competition between Berlin’s two teams!

Bringing a Jewish Past to Present-Day Berlin

Thursday, October 22, 2009

On Thursday our class made an excursion to the Jewish Museum in Berlin. This museum consists of two buildings which appear separated from the above ground, but are connected by underground tunnels. The oldest building was constructed as a courthouse in the 18th century; the newer building, designed by Daniel Libeskind, was finished and opened in 2001 (nearly a decade after its design).

The newer portion of the Jewish Museum is well known for its unique architecture, though some of its more interesting and complicated architectural features were changed or abandoned during the construction process to cut costs. The structure of the building is supposed to have an effect upon those inside of it. In fact, when the amazing structure was finished, debate arose over whether or not the building should remain empty and serve as a memorial instead of being filled with relics to function as a museum. Eventually the decision was made for it to become a museum as intended.

Upon first entering the museum I was not significantly affected by the architecture; though I thought it was very creative, it did not communicate a specific message to me about Jewish experience. This changed, however, upon my entering the Holocaust Tower. This structure stands apart from the remainder of the museum structure but remains connected to it by a hallway called the Axis of Holocaust. I remember being suddenly aware of the darkness and the cold when I stepped into the tower. Even the slightest noise made within echoed for several seconds. The only source of light was a small opening at the top of the tower, though the light entered indirectly, discouraging the idea that this was a possible way out of the tower. I felt trapped and alone, despite the presence of some 30 other tourists within the Tower. I now understood the hype about Libeskind’s architecture, which truly affected me.

Berlin's New Synagogue

On Thursday, October 15th, our class took a tour of what might be called the Jewish quarter of Berlin, where much of Berlin’s Jewish population was concentrated before the Holocaust. We visited several sites of importance to Berlin’s Jewish heritage, as well as the resistance to Nazi deportation of Jews. One such site was Otto Weidt’s old brush factory where blind and def Jews were employed and protected from deportation during WWII. Otto Weidt’s story is much like that of the famous Spielberg film, Schindler’s List. Because his trade in the brush industry was labeled as necessary for the war effort, Weidt was able, through bribery and conspiracy, to obtain documents allowing many Jews in his employ to avoid deportation to concentration camps. We took a short tour of the small factory, now set up as an exhibition paying tribute to Weidt’s noble deeds. We were also able to meet with the director of the exhibition, who revealed its origins as a school project! Next, we made our way to the New Synagogue on Oranienburgstrasse. Constructed in the early 1860s, this Synagogue became the Jewish community’s center in Berlin, until it was almost completely destroyed by bombs during WWII. The synagogue has now been partially restored, and remains a cultural center for the Jewish community, its role however, has expanded, as the synagogue has opened its doors to the public, as a museum of the synagogue’s history, and that of the Berlin’s Jewish community. A large part of the synagogue has not been restored however, though the Jewish community has been offered the funds to rebuild, it has deferred this decision to future generations, claiming that the Jewish population in Berlin has not yet recovered to the point that it could fill the fully restored building. Thus, the partially restored synagogue remains a symbol of an only partially restored Jewish community in Berlin.

For the weekend of October 9th, our class headed south to Leipzig for a fieldtrip. October 9th marks the 20 year anniversary of the Monday Demonstrations in Leipzig which eventually snowballed into people’s demands for democratic reform throughout the GDR. Highlights of the trip included visiting the St. Nicolai Church, where the Peace Prayers and Monday Demonstrations originated, and the St. Thomas Church, where J.S. Bach composed and performed his music for 27 years. Both of these churches hold important historical significance. However, I was more impressed by the largest monument in all of Europe, the Völkerschlachtdenkmal or Monument to the Battle of Nations, which I visited on October 10th with several classmates during our free time. Originally the monument was built to on the 100th anniversary of the battle to commemorate Napoleon’s defeat and the end of his campaign in Europe. However, my interest in the monument stems not from its original purpose, but from its use as a symbol in the decades since its construction. The evolution of the Völkerschlachtdenkmal’s symbolism parallels the evolution of the German people and its government, as each regime in power used the implemented the monument in its own propaganda and rhetoric. The Völkerschlachtdenkmal was a favorite location of Hitler’s when he made speeches in Leipzig, as well as a symbol of Russo-German unity for the GDR. Today its original status as a symbol of German unity would seem appropriate once more, though this monument will forever remind us of the legacy of nationalism which prevailed in Germany for centuries.

Above is a picture of myself and a few classmates in front of the Völkerschlachtdenkmal