The city is bustling, and so is our calendar. September is here, bringing with it art, and with it a stack of openings, talks, and performances. To help you keep track, here are some suggestions for the next few days. We’re starting with something slightly intellectual: Crit Club is back in Berlin. Since its first event, Trauma has been bringing art discourse to the stage as a competitive sporting event. This time, the Elisabethkirche in Mitte is being transformed into a debate arena, with the central question: “Should art be competitive?” — including an appearance by the Berlin Adler Football Team. If you want to see art in a more conventional way, start at the Schering Foundation project space (Unter den Linden 32–34) with kennedy+swan. With The Red Queen Effect, the duo’s works deal with AI-supported diagnostics, fantasies of immortality, and the economization of the healthcare system. Marc Henry’s solo show Theorie der feinen Leute is running in Mitte at Galerie Anton Janizewski. The title refers to Thorstein Veblen’s “The Theory of the Leisure Class” (1899) – and Henry translates this analysis of consumption and distinction into large-format paintings that combine modernism, surrealism, and digital collage vocabulary.
Next stop: Kreuzberg, Russi Klenner. The gallery presents Stella Winter’s first solo show. It’s colorful and overloaded, in the best way. Between Bridges shows Sofia Reyes Alucinación, the Colombian artist’s first solo exhibition in Europe. Her works range from self-portraits to surreal collages. “Portrait, document, love letter, and diagnosis all at once,” says Reyes. The works of Julius Bobke are also a document and an ambivalent love letter to the overwhelming demands of everyday life as an artist in the city. This weekend, the Berlin artist is launching his Artist Book, yet untitled, in the project space roam, next to the Jewish Museum, and filling the space with a solo show. The exhibition opens on Friday, followed by the book launch with Mimosa Brunch on Saturday. Also not to miss: this year, the Paint Shop opened in Neukölln, setting itself the goal of initially only exhibiting FLINTA*. After some very good opening exhibitions, the project space now presents Paula Santomé with The Beginning of Everything. For those who want to venture further afield: Fluentum is opening Jordan Strafer’s Dissonance. The American artist transforms the venue into a 1990s talk show studio and continues her ongoing film trilogy Loophole. Courtroom drama meets reality TV aesthetics, and the audience becomes part of the next episode. Or head to the Wilhelm Hallen for the festival Hallen, with its largest edition to date and 36 participants from galleries, collections, and institutions. If you want to get involved, Kunstforum invites you to a zine workshop (12.09.2025) with archive material, sketches, and collages. As always, there’s too much to see, but that’s exactly what makes it so appealing: a weekend of non-stop sprinting from off-spaces to institutional heavyweights.
Text: Inga Krumme / Photos: Tanzini di Bella, Imago, Amy Poncher / Credit: Jordan Strafer; Heidi, Berlin; Julius Bobke
St. Elisabeth Kirche, Invalidenstr. 3, 10115 Berlin–Mitte; map
Crit Club 10.09.2025 ab 19h. Entry free, RSVP here.
@traumaisforever
Schering Stiftung, Unter den Linden 32–34, 10117 Berlin–Mitte; map
The Red Queen Effect 11.09.–30.11.2025. Vernissage 10.09. from 18h.
@scheringstiftung
Galerie Anton Janizewski, Weydingerstr.10, 10178 Berlin–Mitte; map
Marc Henry Theorie der feinen Leute – Opening 11.09.2025 from 18h.
@antonjanizewski
Russi Klenner, Luckauer Str.16, 10969 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Stella Winter Soloshow from 11.09.2025.
@russiklenner
Between Bridges, Adalbertstr.43, 10997 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Sofía Reyes 11.–14.09.2025, daily 11–19h.
@betweenbridgesfoundation
Roam Project Space, Lindenstr.91, 10969 Berlin–Kreuzberg; map
Julius Bobke yet untitled: Opening 12.09.2025 from 18h. Book Launch & Mimosa Brunch 13.09.2025 from 14h.
@roam_projects_______
Paint Shop, Hasenheide 12, 10967 Berlin–Neukölln; map
Paula Santomé The Beginning of Everything. Special opening hours during Berlin Art Week: 10.–14.09.2025. Fr 18–22h, Sa & So 14–19h.
@paintshop_berlin
Fluentum, Clayallee 174, 14195 Berlin–Dahlem; map
Jordan Strafer Dissonance – Opening & Live Film Shoot 10.09.2025 from 18h.
@fluentumcollection
Wilhelm Hallen, Kopenhagener Str. 60–68, 13407 Berlin–Reinickendorf; Stadtplan
Zine Workshop 12.09.2025, 14–18h. No registration needed. Participation from age 12.
@wilhelmhallen
