Few buildings in the city are as timelessly beautiful as Werner Düttmann’s Academy of Arts building on Hanseatenweg in Tiergarten, and few topics are as contemporary as generative art — or so one would think. Technical and digital development originates even before the design of the Berlin architectural icon, in which the first Generative Art Summittakes place (from 03.–06.07.2024) and which gathers renowned artists, scientists and researchers from all over the world for an intergenerational dialogue. “From the Camera to Artificial Intelligence” is the motto of the conference. The aesthetic oscillograms of the forefather of computer art Herbert W. Franke, which he created in the 1950s using an analog computer and which still represent an undisputed milestone in generative art, form the starting point. So it is hardly surprising that the Herbert W. Franke Foundation is behind the summit, preserving and developing the spirit and legacy of this exceptional artist and scientist. The packed conference program spans two days (03.–04.07.) and is complemented by a film night of the best artistic computer graphics of the 20th century presented by Larry Cuba and a solo show by Franke in the König Gallery. Finally, the crowning finale will be a brilliant performance night, “Sandfiction 4K: The Orchid Cage“, based on Franke’s classic, visionary and bitterly evil science fiction parable about the evolution of man in a highly technologized society in cyberspace. It bears an eery semblance to our future here on earth. 

Text: Giulia Tancredi / Credits: “Oszillogramme” by Herbert. W. Franke, Stiftung Herbert W. Franke, “Sandfiction 4K: The Orchid Cage” by Kaleidolux, Hartmut Hientzsch  

Generative Art Summit at the Academy of Arts, Hanseatenweg 10, 10557 Berlin–Tiergarten; map

03.–06.07.2024. Get your tickets here.

Akinbode Akinbiyi wanted to become a writer. He studied literature in England and Germany. But today, he writes with his camera. His photographs flow out of him like words when he captures unfiltered, everyday life on the streets — from Berlin to Brasília to Bamako. In front of Akinbiyi’s Rolleiflex, all people and motifs are equally important and worth capturing. He does not look for grand monuments or gestures, he does not stage them. He sees the city through the eyes of everyday people, not the 1%. Between the curb and the front of the building, between the marketplace and the crosswalk, he finds what makes you look ahead. Akinbiyi is a pedestrian among pedestrians who pulls you along with him. Having grown up between London and Lagos, Akinbiyi has called Berlin his home since 1991. The time has come for the city to exhibit him in his first solo exhibition in Germany — and the Berlinische Galerie is doing just that as part of its award of the Hannah-Höch-Prize 2024.

The museum is showing 120 photographs from various series, some of which span several decades. Follow Akinbiyi through urban canyons and along sidewalks, immersing yourself in familiar and distant areas. In “Lagos: All Roads”, he traces the development of the growing metropolis in the 1980s, while in “Black Spirituality” he examines the significance of religion for the Brazilian diaspora. The smells of dusty asphalt, street parties, and subway shafts emanate from his pictures, which he captures predominantly in black and white. They are poetic images that have political undertones, as in his series on the African Quarter in Wedding. The photos can be read like stories, full of metaphors and criticism of colonialism and racism.

Text: Laura Storfner / Photos: Akinbode Akinbiyi, Wilton

Berlinische Galerie, Alte Jakobstr.124–128, 10969 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map

Akinbode Akinbiyi: Being, Seeing, Wandering – Hannah-Höch-Prize 2024, until 14.10.2024.

@akinbodeakinbiyi
@berlinischegalerie

Leaving Berlin from time to time is always a good idea, especially in summer. If you travel in a north-easterly direction, you’ll eventually arrive at the Castle Neuhardenberg. The Prussian-classical ensemble lies contently in the sun, a few grasshoppers chirp nearby, it smells of freshly cut grass. The palace building, side wings, orangery, distillery and Schinkel church spread across the grounds, held together by one of Brandenburg’s most beautiful English-style gardens. Now in the hands of a foundation, the rooms house a hotel, various restaurants, an informative exhibition on the location’s history, and plenty of space for culture. For example, the group exhibition for the 21st Brandenburg Art Prize will open in the exhibition hall on 16.06.2024 and the “Ins Freie” festival attracts visitors to stylish open-air events. And what events they are! Whether it’s a reading of the Yasmina Reza classic “God of Carnage” performed by four actors (with the haunting voice of Maria Schrader and gentle tone of Samuel Finzi), a concert by former small change princess Dota Kehr and the Babelsberg Film Orchestra, or the veteran of German political song, Konstantin Wecker, the program is exciting, high-quality and varied. One of the highlights is the evening “Cinema meets Cuisine” curated by former Berlinale director Dieter Kosslick, which combines dinner, concert, talk and film.

It’s all about enjoyment and sensuality. The movie “The Taste of Things” by Vietnamese-born French director Trần Anh Hùng starring Juliette Binoche, chansons performed by the great Burghart Klaußner and French specialties in the rose garden will take center stage. Preceded by celebrity chefs Eckart Witzigmann and Stephan Hentschel discussing French cuisine. And when the sun has set, the last glass of champagne has been emptied and Berlin simply seems far too far away, you’ll be lucky to find a fresh hotel bed just a few steps away.

Text: Alina Herbel / Photos: Fotokraftwerk, Toma Babovic, movie still “The Taste of Things”

Schloss Neuhardenberg, Schinkelplatz 1–8, 15320 Neuhardenberg; map
Find the full program here.

@schlossneuhardenberg