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THREE HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE: THE ARTISTS’ COLLECTIVE GENERAL IDEA AT GROPIUS BAU

THREE HEADS ARE BETTER THAN ONE: THE ARTISTS’ COLLECTIVE GENERAL IDEA AT GROPIUS BAU

Toronto, early seventies. AA Bronson, Felix Partz and Jorge Zontal are working as an artists’ collective under the name General Idea. Their performances and actions are public spectacles – they borrow gestures from television shows and beauty contests to make them absurd. At the time, they describe themselves as a threesome that wants to construct the future as they please: “We take whatever form our triple queer masculinity needs: a poodle gang, a baby love triangle, a theater made of doctors.” The Gropius Bau is now dedicating a comprehensive retrospective to them, looking back at their work with more than 200 pieces. From the beginning, General Idea wanted to reach people: Their art should be accessible to all. It wasn’t unusual for them to take self-portraits: sometimes as serious-looking poodles, sometimes as the Three Graces. They satirized themselves and the mechanisms of the art world, appropriated motifs from their forefathers such as Caspar David Friedrich and Mondrian in order to get their own messages across to the people.

A central theme they deal with again and again is the AIDS epidemic. When the HIV virus started spreading in the eighties, they wanted to counteract the stigmatization and exclusion. Taking their cue from Robert Indiana’s 1964 pop art emblem “LOVE”, they developed posters with “AIDS” written on them, which they papered on the streets of New York, San Francisco, Toronto and Berlin. Their posters were a radical act of visualization at a time when the disease was only talked about behind closed doors. The installation “Fin de siècle”, a sea of ice made of Styrofoam that takes up the atrium of the Gropius Building, has also been read as a commentary on the AIDS crisis: Society does everything it can to save baby seals, but has only coldness for those infected with HIV. Shortly after the actions, Felix Partz and Jorge Zontal learned of their own HIV diagnoses in the early nineties. The three also translate their lives with the disease into art – they turn medications into sculptures and portray themselves as doctors. With the death of Partz and Zontal, General Idea came to an end as a collective in 1994, but AA Bronson-who now lives and works in Berlin-remembers the collaborators to this day. The result is a moving exhibition that speaks to the past, but especially to friendship, love and activism.

Text: Laura Storfner / Credits & Photos: Gropius Bau, Luca Girardini, Royal Bank of Canada Art Collection

Gropius Bau, Niederkirchnerstr.7, 10963 Berlin-Kreuzberg; map

The retrospective “General Idea” is running until 14.01.2024. 
Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri 11–19h, Sat+Sun 10–19h

@gropiusbau
@generalidea_

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KAPELLE BAR – WHERE ART, GOOD COCKTAILS AND MUSIC COME TOGETHER

KAPELLE BAR – WHERE ART, GOOD COCKTAILS AND MUSIC COME TOGETHER

Anyone who knew Berlin in the 90s knows about the small Kiezcafé Kapelle on Zionskirchplatz. Breakfast, brunch, café lattes – there was no end to the weekends here. The café was a legendary meeting place for artists, students and neighbors. In the spring of 2023, the chapel passed into the hands of Katya and Thomas – both work in the Berlin art scene and so the chapel – which will now continue as a bar – will remain a meeting place for those with an affinity for art. Since the hardships of the last pandemic years, they both wish for the same thing: to get back out among people. Since July, they have been taking the plunge and heralding a new beginning with the Kapelle. The vision is clear: to create an inspiring place with good drinks and a varying musical program on Fridays (DJs and concerts). The small bar room is bathed in pleasant black and gold light, the music invites you to stay. On the walls hang works by Berlin artist friends: Above the chapel-like bar area, Anselm Reyle’s light installation of neon tubes shines and watches over the guests, who make themselves comfortable in armchairs next to design magazines and card games.

The menu is impressive – an illustrious selection of white and red natural wines from Italy and France, as well as classic long drinks and cocktails await you: espresso martinis, gin and tonics, whiskey sours, smoked Negronis – one drink after the other leaves the bar counter. And even those who don’t drink alcohol are well catered for here: for example, the Marseille Spritz. The scenery is reminiscent of a large living room. The first guests fill the room. One immediately wants to join them. The music gets louder. Memories of past Berlin nights and famous bars in Paris and New York are awakened. The feeling that one is in good hands here quickly sets in. We stay and I predict: the Kapelle Bar will certainly become a legendary meeting place for artists, creatives and neighbors again.

Text: Milena Kalojanov / Photos: Robyn Steffen

Kapelle, Zionskirchstr.22–24, 10119 Berlin–Mitte; map
Wed–Sat 19–01h

@kapelleberlin

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BUY AND SELL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: EBAY LOKAL MAKES SHOPPING EASY AND SAFE
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BUY AND SELL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: EBAY LOKAL MAKES SHOPPING EASY AND SAFE

You know the feeling: you’re cleaning out your apartment and you find the wrong things in dusty corners, you’re cleaning out your wardrobe to make room for the next one, and you’re desperately trying to get rid of your old dresser because you’ve fallen in love with a new one – and most of the time you can’t say goodbye to the things fast enough. For such cases, there is now clearly a solution that makes your life easier: the new buying and selling experience eBay Lokal. You don’t have to worry about shipping, the person lives just around the corner and may come by the same evening – so your old item becomes someone else’s new favorite. And unlike other online platforms, here the price is bindingly agreed upon by concluding the purchase via the eBay app, i.e. the item is paid for immediately online – saving you the hassle of renegotiating when you pick it up. And so that everything is even faster – and especially safer – when you pick up the item: armed with a QR pickup code in the eBay app, prospective buyers can simply show it and have it scanned by the seller. It’s like a digital handshake that completes the purchase – so the entire buying process is secure and doesn’t require cash or other forms of payment, and both parties are protected by buyer and seller protection. The only thing you have to do is simply click on the “Free pickup” option in the app, pay for the item, and then arrange a time and place. At the meeting, the delivery must be confirmed using a 6-digit code or the QR code in the chat of the eBay app. So goodbye messaging back and forth and annoying haggling on your own doorstep: With eBay Lokal, you can easily and quickly get rid of once beloved treasures and grab rare items.

Text: Marie Mayer / Photos: eBay, Luna Schaffron

eBay Lokal

@ebay_de

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BISTRO SPUMANTE – VACATION FEELING IN THE MIDDLE OF KREUZBERG
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BISTRO SPUMANTE – VACATION FEELING IN THE MIDDLE OF KREUZBERG

Has it been too long since your last trip to the Mediterranean – or are you dreaming of one? No problem! Perhaps the solution is a visit to Bistro Spumante in Kreuzberg. Opened by sisters Helene and Emma in March 2023, the bistro immediately makes you feel like a passenger on the ferry to the Mediterranean. Because everything is just right: from the white Monobloc chairs and the azure-blue painted floor, to the warmly glowing fairy lights, to the seaside snacks served in red baskets. The mood is one of relaxed chatter, accompanied by pleasant Italo-pop music. The fellow travelers to the bistro are friends of the family business, neighbors from the neighborhood, the curious, and vacationers like me. The destination of the trip might not be clear: Italy, Portugal or Greece? But at Bistro Spumante you don’t have to decide. There are rotating drinks and corresponding dishes from the different countries around the Mediterranean. Sometimes there is Strangolapreti (spinach dumplings with sage butter and parmesan) on the menu, sometimes Parmigiana or Tosta Mista (ham and cheese toast) – right underneath the onion bread. Or would you prefer fresh, salty olives, a portion of French fries or calamari with aioli? I just tried a little bit of everything, because I could quickly switch to vacation mode.

The decision on drinks is easy, as the menu is full of vacation gems. I start my getaway with a personal favorite: sparkling wine on tap – yes, that’s right! – Spumante on tap, delightful. Along with Mediterranean classics like Campari, Ouzo and Pastis, there’s Cynar Spritz, Averna Sour and Frangelico. The vacation mood is picking up. Those who prefer non-alcoholic drinks will be delighted with lemonades, Chinotto Spritz or Peroni 0.0%. Inspired by the warm atmosphere, my ferry heads for Mallorca and I order a Cortado leche y leche, a Spanish espresso variation with condensed milk. And as it usually does, this successful vacation goes by far too quickly. This one only lasted a few hours, but I’m not sad, because I know: I can always come back on deck at Bistro Spumante when my longing for a Mediterranean escape becomes too great. The ferry Spumante leaves on time every day – you only have to be patient on Mondays. Ahoy & a presto!

Hanna Jensen is an architect and a native of South Baden. Berlin has been her home since 2020. She especially loves the summer months, when the days never want to end.

Text: Hanna Jensen / Photos: Sophie Döring

Bistro Spumante, Reichenberger Str.73, 10999 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Tue-Wed 12–23h, Thu 16–23h, Fri 16–02h, Sat 13–02h, Sun 13–20h

@bistro.spumante

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EXPERIENCE BERLIN FROM A NEW ANGLE WITH PUZZLE TOURS BY PLANLOS.IN
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EXPERIENCE BERLIN FROM A NEW ANGLE WITH PUZZLE TOURS BY PLANLOS.IN

Berlin – A text message from the year 1888, sent by Empress Victoria. And the first task comes via text message: In the conspiracy between the liberals and monarchists, you are supposed to help Victoria bring explosive documents to safety in order to preserve the legacy of Emperor Frederick III and rewrite history. Armed with your cell phone, start your scavenger hunt with planlos.in between Bergmannkiez and Viktoriapark, through winding backyards and past historical monuments. Guided by mysterious text message clues, you and your friends will discover new places where you will be given tricky tasks that are just waiting to be solved – and you will have to think out of the box! In Berlin, there are currently three different puzzle tours that have been developed by local writers: Explore Tegel from the Borsig Works to Tegeler See with the mission to win the race for world domination – or rediscover the Scheunenviertel in Mitte, while saving Marlene Dietrich’s film career along the way: Here, art and architecture fans get their money’s worth. Whether you’re traveling with friends, colleagues, fellow students, your family or other clever minds who share the joy of puzzling, the puzzles are waiting for you – are you ready to crack them?

Text: Alison Musch / Photos: planlos.in

Planlos.in
You can find the puzzle tours for Berlin here. Solid German skills are required to participate.

@planlos.in

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