The Uferhallen are an important production and presentation venue for art and culture in Berlin and house studios, dance and rehearsal rooms, sound studios, a concert hall and an exhibition hall, workshops, gastronomy and versatile event spaces. More than 150 cultural workers live and work on the premises and with several hundred visitors every day, the Uferhallen are a central place of cultural exchange and an integral part of Berlin’s cultural scene and urban society. After years of struggle for the continued existence of the Uferhallen, which are representative of displacement and gentrification processes in the neighbourhood and the entire city, a solution for the preservation of the cultural location is now emerging after renewed protests and negotiations between the senate and the owners, although its continued existence is still not secured.
Fig. above: Alfredo Jaar, Be Afraid of the Enormity of the Possible, 2015/2023, Neon, Stahl, Ausstellungsansicht Vom Baden lernen, Baden/CH, Copyright: Daniel Ammann
Based on the long-standing commitment of the Neuer Berliner Kunstverein (n.b.k.) to the preservation of the cultural location Uferhallen and as a highlight of Berlin Art Week, n.b.k. and Uferhallen e. V., together with the curators Isabelle Meiffert and Vincent Schier, are realising an extensive programme of exhibitions and events on the grounds, in the halls and studios of the former industrial site.
A changing screening programme with works from the n.b.k. video forum. Video Forum addresses questions of work, value creation and migration. Site-specific installations at the entrance gates and in the Great Hall set the framework for the overall project Frequently Asked Questions.
Curated by Isabelle Meiffert and Vincent Schier, the performances and interventions address questions of coexistence from both local and global perspectives and explore uncertainties and limbo that affect human and non-human communities now and in the future. Acute challenges such as the sell-out of the city are addressed as well as the question of the influence of changing climatic conditions on our coexistence.
An exhibition organised for Uferhallen e.V. by Elena Alonso Fernández and Mona Pourebrahim follows on from the title of the project and resolutely addresses the question of the future of Uferhallen. The exhibition takes up the current state of negotiations between the owners and the Berlin Senate and brings together the many voices of the Uferhallen artists.
Programme
The programme will be complemented by thematic tours of the site and the neighbourhood. On the weekend of 16 and 17 September, a neighbourhood festival and extensive daytime programmes with talks and open studios will open up and activate the entire site for visitors. Musical contributions will be provided by the BVG Orchestra and Malonda as part of Zorka Wollny’s Evictions Songs.
Open Studios
16. & 17. September 2023, 12 – 20 hrs.
With: Stefan Alber, Elena Alonso Fernández, Tim Anadere, Quirin Bäumler, Sandra E. Blatterer, Antje Blumenstein, Peter Böhnisch, Gauthier Cer, Nicole Dauerbrett, Peter Dobroschke, Steffi Düsterhöft, Matthias Galvez, Wolfgang Ganter, Harriet Groß, Christian Henkel, Held/Lachenmann, Yael Graetz, Anne Jungjohann, Ricard Larsson, Werner Liebmann, Lage der Fiktion (Atelier Bettina Scholz & Susanne Zeile), Peter Klare, David Moses, Jan Muche, Rainer Neumeier, Manfred Peckl, Kristian Pettersen, Mona Pourebrahim, Isabell Rehm, Hansjörg Schneider, Dasniya Sommer, Friedemann von Stockhausen, Ralf Tekaat, Ria Wank, Klaus Weber, Vincent Wenzel, Lars Wiedemann, Norbert Witzgall, Hamid Yaraghchi.
Further events and information about the programme will be announced on the website of n.b.k. and Uferhallen e.V..
Artists: Antje Blumenstein, Monica Bonvicini, Sven Drühl, Antje Ehmann, Harun Farocki, Elena Alonso Fernández, Heiner Franzen, Claire Fontaine, Lena von Goedeke, Harriet Groß, Tang Han, Vanessa Henn, Christian Henkel, Alfredo Jaar, Christine Sun Kim und Thomas Mader, Philipp Lachenmann, Werner Liebmann, Malonda, Alexandra Pirici, Mona Pourebrahim, Oliver Ressler und Dario Azzellini, Tanja Rochelmeyer, Anike Joyce Sadiq & Laurie Young, Florine Schüschke, Pilvi Takala, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Raul Walch, Klaus Weber, Zorka Wollny, Hamid Yaraghchi u. a.
Curators: Marius Babias und Anna Lena Seiser (n.b.k.), Isabelle Meiffert und Vincent Schier, Performances und Interventionen, in Zusammenarbeit mit dem Uferhallen e.V.
Curatorial assistance: Cilia Jonda, Susanne Mierzwiak
WHERE?
Uferhallen
Uferstraße 8–11
13357 Berlin
WHEN?
Duration: 15 September 2023 – 24 September 2023
Opening hours: Thursday-Friday 5pm-2pm / Saturday-Sunday 12pm-8pm.
Opening: Thursday, 14 September 2023, 6 p.m. with performance & a concert by Arnold Dreyblatt & The Orchestra of Excited Strings
