With their well-tended little strips of greenery, allotment gardens were once mocked as the epitome of civilized Germanness. Fast-forward to today and anyone who has a plot of their own in Berlin can consider themselves very lucky indeed. Since the lockdown there has been huge demand for allotments, with some landlords even closing their waiting lists. If you aren’t one of those lucky few but still want to experience the green good life, you should get yourself to the 2021 Britzenale. Since 2016, curator and gardener Christof Zwiener has invited artists every two years to his garden at the Morgenentau allotments in Britz, Neukölln. Zwiener knows a thing or two about unusual exhibition venues: he is currently occupying the gatehouse of the former GDR Academy of Sciences in Pankow for his project space Stroux. Back in Britz, three artist collectives and 14 artists including Pola Sieverding, Alvaro Urbano and Nasan Tur are using this green opportunity to investigate the significance of gardens and greenhouses as places of retreat. The result is sculptures, installations and performances that comment critically and humorously on things like flower beds, garden sheds and meticulously mown lawns. The trip out to Britz is very much worth it, both for a glimpse into this semi-private paradise and for the free open-air art…
Text: Laura Storfner / Credit: Christof Zwiener, Berlin Britzenale, Köster & Juchmann
2021 Berlin Britzenale, Kleingartenanlage Morgentau e.V., Blaschkoallee 52, 12359 Berlin–Britz; map
06.–08.08.2021, Fri 18–22h, Sat–Sun 12–19h
@britzenale
