Aug. 07, 2019
It’s almost that time when the art world emerges from its summer hibernation and kicks into full swing for its busiest season, starting with Berlin Art Week. From September 11th to 15th there will be no shortage of events throughout the German capital, which will play host to two international art fairs and partner with nearly 20 institutions, 4 art awards, 15 private collections and over 20 project spaces.
We’re particularly excited to see works by the nine Berlin Art Prize finalists, each of whom will have a solo exhibition at a corresponding project space. There will be shows by Esteban Rivera Ariza, Musquiqui Chihying, Marianna Christofides, Larissa Fassler, Ada Van Hoorebeke, Wieland Schönfelder, Agnes Scherer, Joshua Schwebel and Min-Wei Ting at spaces including gr_und, Very, Display, SMAC, Kinderhook & Caracas, Ashley, Horse & Pony, Kreuzberg Pavilion and The Institute for Endotic Research (TIER). The exhibitions open on August 30th and 31st, while the award ceremony, during which the three winners will be announced, and the party will be held during Art Week, on September 14th.
Official partner exhibitions that we’re particularly looking forward to include Candice Breitz at n.b.k.’s showroom, ‘Robert Frank: Unseen’ at C/O Berlin and ‘Bjørn Mulhus: Free Update’ at KINDL. The four artists nominated for this year’s prestigious Preis der Nationalgalerie—Pauline Curnier Jardin, Simon Fujiwara, Katja Novitskova and Flaka Haliti—will also have work on view at Hamburger Bahnhof and the winner will be announced during a ceremony on September 12th.
Video art and video sculpture will receive special treatment in the exhibition ‘Magic Media—Media Magic’ at Akademie der Künste. The included works are from curator Wulf Herzogenrath’s personal archive, which has been home to many highlights of the medium since its inception in the 1960s. There will be moving image work by Nam June Paik, Vito Acconci, John Cage, Joan Jonas, Rebecca Horn and Bill Viola, among others, as well as sketches, photographs, artist books and other documents by the same artists. If you’re in town, don’t miss the guided tour of this exhibition on Sunday, September 12th at noon.
When it comes to private collections, we look forward to ‘Speaking Images’ at Dahlem’s new private space, Fluentum, where works by Frank Heath, Hiwa K, Sven Johne, Stefan Panhans, Hito Steyerl, Vibeke Tandberg and Katarina Zdjelar will be on view in the exhibition curated by Alexander Koch and Nikolaus Oberhuber. As usual, don’t miss a visit to the Julia Stoschek Collection, which will present the first European exhibition of WangShui, which operates as a polyvalent studio that engages the practice of queer world-building and its politics through art, film, and/or architecture.
Finally, if you’re in a more commercial mood and want a look at what both Berlin and international galleries have to offer, head to Art Berlin and Positions Art Fair Berlin. Inside the hangars of the former Tempelhof Airport, 110 galleries will be participating at Art Berlin and 69 at Positions.
Stay tuned for our official Berlin Art Week 2019 Hit List and check out our Restaurant & Hotel Guide for the best places to stay and eat when you’re in town.
