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FROM NORTH EURASIA TO PERU: THE HKW OPENS TWO NEW EXHIBITIONS

FROM NORTH EURASIA TO PERU: THE HKW OPENS TWO NEW EXHIBITIONS

How do artists, curators and writers talk about Northern Eurasia? Beginning tomorrow evening, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt will present various chapters from which a fragmentary narrative of the region emerges as part of a new exhibition As Though We Hid the Sun in a Sea of Stories. The show roams the territory of northern Eurasia, casting spotlights on more than a dozen countries that were first in the territory or sphere of influence of the Russian Empire, and later in the Soviet Union. Equal parts presentation and research project, the show chronicles control and resistance, pain and self-empowerment. The fact that the narrative takes detours in the process and is composed in a collage-like manner is reflected in the title of the exhibition: it refers to a poem by the Kashmiri-American poet Agha Shahid Ali from 1990 – a time when the USSR was slowly dissolving. Ali dedicates it to the situation in his violence-plagued homeland and at the same time references the Polish-Jewish-Soviet poet Ossip Mandelstam, who died in a labor camp near Vladivostok in 1938. In the exhibition title, verses by the two poets are interwoven into a stanzaic line.

The fragmentary nature underlying this procedure also connects the show’s various temporal levels and narrative strands on a large scale. Only amid ambiguity and complexity can one attempt to understand what has moved the region in the past and where it is headed in the future. The Peruvian artist Sergio Zevallos is also concerned with regaining control over one’s own self in times of oppression. The HKW is dedicating a solo exhibition to him that looks back on his 40 years of work. Exercises in Transformation looks at dominant systems of knowledge and presents strategies for subverting them. In doing so, Zevallos repeatedly uses his own body as a starting point for ways out of a society determined by colonialism and capitalism. Zevallos’ performances are painful and intimate, but instead of relying on grand gestures, ultimately it is the incidental poetics found in nuances that outlast structures and situations.

Text: Laura Storfner / Credit: Sergio Zevallos; Jaanus Samma, Temnikova & Kasela Gallery; Auseklis Baušķenieks / Photos: Ansis Starks

Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John–Foster–Dulles–Allee 10, 10557 Berlin–Mitte; map
Wed–Mon 12–19h

As Though We Hid the Sun in a Sea of Stories: Fragments for a Geopoetics of North Eurasia 21.10.2023–14.01.2024

Exercises in Transformation—Sergio Zevallos Exhibition, Archive, Performances, Publication 21.10.2023–14.01.2024 Opening 20.10.2023

Free entry every Monday and every first Sunday of the month (Museum Sunday).

@hkw_berlin

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LONGING FOR THE NORTH: EDVARD MUNCH IN THE BERLINISCHE GALERIE

LONGING FOR THE NORTH: EDVARD MUNCH IN THE BERLINISCHE GALERIE

Every child knows Edvard Munch’s works – and not just because an emoji is based on his most famous work, “The Scream.” What few people know, however, is that Munch not only left his mark on his native Norway, he also had a decisive influence on the Berlin art scene at the turn of the century. In 1892, at the invitation of the “Verein Berliner Künstler,” the young artist came to the capital for the first time: but his solo exhibition led to a scandal. In Berlin, people were not ready for Munch’s colors and the immediacy of his scenes. The press and conservative painters were shocked, Munch’s works were called “smear works” and his exhibition had to close after a few days. The then 29-year-old was not dissuaded. On the contrary. The Berlinische Galerie now looks back on the history of Edvard Munch and Berlin with around 80 works.

In interplay with works by other artists who crossed Munch’s path in Berlin, an atmospheric picture of the late 19th century emerges. The show demonstrates how Munch became part of the city’s artistic scene: how he met writers, poets, and artists in the wine tavern “Zum schwarzen Ferkel” in Mitte and eventually worked as a member of the Berlin Secession. In contrast to works by Berlin colleagues such as Ludwig von Hofmann or Walter Leistikow, Munch’s views of nature still seem so progressive today, as if comparing different eras. Munch not only broke with the romanticized notion of picturesque fjords – his art pushed the boundaries of what was representable at the time. In this way, the Berlinische Galerie succeeds in conveying why the so-called “Munch Affair” did not go down in the history books as a debacle – but is celebrated to this day as part of the birth of modernism.

Text: Laura Storfner / Photos: Harry Schnitger / Credit: Edvard Munch & Berlinische Galerie

Berlinische Galerie, Alte Jakobstr.124–128, 10969 Berlin-Kreuzberg; map
Edvard Munch: Magic of the North until 22.01.2024. Mon, Wed, Fri, Sat, Sun 10–18h, Thu 10–20h (reduced entry from 17 Uhr)

@berlinischegalerie

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A DEAD MAN IN THE ELEVATOR, QUESTIONS OF EXISTENCE IN THE LOBBY & BACH TO SING ALONG WITH — THE NEUKÖLLNER OPERA STAGES “DER TEUFEL IM LIFT”

A DEAD MAN IN THE ELEVATOR, QUESTIONS OF EXISTENCE IN THE LOBBY & BACH TO SING ALONG WITH — THE NEUKÖLLNER OPERA STAGES “DER TEUFEL IM LIFT”

Few cantata works – lyrical poems in various movements with instrumental accompaniment – are as well known as that of Johann Sebastian Bach. But how does one approach such authoritative material? Beginning this Saturday (14.10.2023), the Neuköllner Oper will present what is probably the best possible variant of a reinterpreted approach: “Der Teufel im Lift” is based on music by J.S. Bach, with text by John von Düffel and the lautten compagney. It pours onto the stage full of humor and suspense. And that’s what it’s all about: The “light-seer” Blanche (what else could her name be?), the brain specialist Prof. Dr. Sanchez, the young journalist Raquel and a helpless and restless porter meet at night in the lobby of the “Hotel Heaven.” When a mysterious stranger falls from the elevator, confronting the travelers with their deepest and most dramatic longings, fears and surreal fantasies. Is it a fallen angel? Is it Lucifer, the devil, as the mounted cantatas say? “Say, how do you feel about religion” – or about science? Suddenly the eternal Gretchen question is in the room, suddenly it’s all at stake: past and future, life and death, meaning and faith. Gripping, whirling, erratic and thrilling, the piece quite literally takes the audience with it – one or two chorales can be explicitly sung along to. Rarely has Bach felt so close.

Text: Hilka Dirks / Photos: Thomas Koy & Neuköllner Oper

Neuköllner Oper, Karl-Marx-Str.131–133, 12043 Berlin–Neukölln; map
Tue 15–19h.

Teufel im Lift, information and tickets available here.

@neukoellneroper

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FROM IDYLLIC CASTLE PARK TO MODERN EXHIBITIONS: EXCURSION TO NEUHARDENBERG CASTLE

FROM IDYLLIC CASTLE PARK TO MODERN EXHIBITIONS: EXCURSION TO NEUHARDENBERG CASTLE

When it comes to castles, you can’t miss Neuhardenberg Castle in the municipality of the same name in Brandenburg. If you go by car through the entrance gate, you will overlook the long pond, in which several shimmering orange or black spotted koi swim. After a two-minute walk, past the pond and the hotel, you can glimpse Neuhardenberg Castle. The neoclassical elements of the building guide your eye to the filigree inscription “Gratia Regis” (Thanks to the King) above the entrance. It’s a small leap into the past, indicating that the palace served as a gift from Prussian King Frederick William III to his state chancellor, Karl August von Hardenberg, in gratitude for his service. For a small admission fee, you can learn more about the history and heritage of the castle in the permanent exhibition. The palace parterre is open to the public on Sundays. In addition, there are regular events in the light-flooded Orangerie, in the Great Hall and in the Schinkel Church, as well as exhibitions. Just in time, you can stop by the free exhibition “Along the Oder” (until 29.10.2023). There, 14 students of the Ostkreuz School of Photography show in the Great Hall, in the small Orangerie and in the hotel foyer in 13 picture series the most diverse snapshots that the Oder region has to offer.

Starting with the documentation of shimmering pieces of tin in the flowing water to the everyday life of Ukrainian youths who have fled. In a free guided tour on 29.10. (16h), the photographers will talk about their work and their multifaceted experiences in the Oder region.Parallel to this, the exhibition “A glimpse of time – photographic portraits of old age and ageing” will run with works by Helga Paris, Cindy Sherman and Larry Sultan, among others. From the 1910s to the present, the exhibition presents international positions in photography using the example of the portrait. And if you want to do something good not only for your eyes but also for your ears during your visit, then you should definitely drop by – or rather listen to – the “Jeff Lorber Fusion Trio: Space-Time” concert (05.11.2023). If you want to stay longer than just one day at the castle complex, you can pause at Hotel Schloss Neuhardenberg and enjoy a fantastic view from the terrace of the adjacent castle park, designed in the English style with Peter Joseph Lenné’s assistance, over breakfast. Whether you attend an open-air concert, art exhibitions, lectures, performances, or just come to see the castle, it’s worth it!

Text: Mary Linh Tran / Photos: Simon Häuser & Fotokraftwerk

Schloss Neuhardenberg, Schinkelplatz 1-8, 15320 Neuhardenberg, map

Castle visits from April to October Sun 11–18h. Tickets for the “Jeff Lorber Fusion Trio: Space–Time” concert are available here.

@stiftungschlossneuhardenberg

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MODERNITY IN THE FACE OF THE APOCALYPSE – JULIEN GOSSELIN’S VISUALLY POWERFUL EPIC “EXTINCTION” AT THE VOLKSBÜHNE

MODERNITY IN THE FACE OF THE APOCALYPSE – JULIEN GOSSELIN’S VISUALLY POWERFUL EPIC “EXTINCTION” AT THE VOLKSBÜHNE

Nihilism, destruction, and the search for a spilling revolt. Arthur Schnitzler, Hugo von Hofmannsthal and Thomas Bernhard. Party, concert, live film and spoken theater. It was wild, loud and commanding. The Volksbühne’s season opening with Julien Gosselin’s epic production “Extinction” crossed genre boundaries. Revolving around the artistic and intellectual awakening in 20th century Vienna, Gosselin’s play draws us spectators into the rushing spell of the fin de siècle. Marked by social debates, underlying conflicts and the ambivalence between beauty and brutal reality, the French director paints an opulent picture of Viennese life before the First World War, and society fraught with ignorance, individualism and the impending downfall of the Empire. From 07.10.23 the revival can be seen four times at the Volksbühne. In over five hours, with two intermissions and in three languages, the arc spans multimedia through literatures and genres, casting its gaze on the elite’s struggle for ideal and beauty in the face of drive and death. In a kind of three-part “cheerful apocalypse” (Hermann Broch), it is about beauty and drive, nervousness and neurosis, subliminal violence, repressed sexuality and power – and about developing a counter-design of modernity. Narrative and neurosis revolve around ignorance, individualism, liberalization and democratization, sophistication, violence, misogyny and anti-Semitism, industrialization and the bourgeoisie. All the buzzwords of the last century apply, all of them are invoked, conjured up in Gosselin’s visually powerful battle of words in German literature, so engaging that the length of the play flies by.

Text: Hilka Dirks / Photos: Luna Zscharnt

Volksbühne am Rosa-Luxemburg-Platz, Linienstr.227, 10178 Berlin–Mitte; map

Extinction – Performances: Sat 07.10., Sun 08.10., Fri 20.10., Sat 21.10., at 18h. Performances in French and German with German, French and English subtitles.

Tickets are available here

@volksbuehne_berlin

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