13 May 2020

Akademie der Künste digital

Despite the impact of the corona pandemic, the Akademie der Künste remains open and accessible to a wide audience through its various online channels.

In the new series "Akademie Mitglieder im Gespräch" (Akademie Members in Dialogue), artists share their views on the socio-political effects of the corona crisis and the role and potential of culture in times of emergency. Selected discussions take place in collaboration with rbbKultur, other interviews with members are conducted by the directors of the Akademie's six Sections. Jeanine Meerapfel, President of the Akademie der Künste, kicked off the series in early April. Guests so far have included: author Ingo Schulze, honorary president of the Akademie Klaus Staeck, filmmaker Margarethe von Trotta, architect Matthias Sauerbruch, Vice-President of the Akademie Kathrin Röggla, director Jürgen Flimm as well as artistic director and head director of the Komische Oper Berlin, Barrie Kosky. Further interview with Ulrich Matthes, Thomas Heise, Nina Hoss and Jenny Erpenbeck will follow in May. Listen in at www.adk.de (in German language only).

Under the title "Kosmos Heartfield", a virtual exhibition presents photos, documents and audio-visual material from the life and œuvre of John Heartfield, and sets new impulses in the reception of the political artist. An interactive 360° panorama tour will soon allow a virtual visit to the John Heartfield exhibition at Pariser Platz, which will open in June (date to be announced). Additional digital features of the focus on Heartfield can be found here.

The series Finds from the Archives presents selected written documents, artworks and notable objects from the Archives of the Akademie der Künste. These could be finds which stand out, or which came to light unexpectedly, or which have been newly acquired or (re-)discovered.

From 21 to 24 May, the Akademie der Künste, in cooperation with the Berliner Hörspielfestival (BHF, Berlin Audio Play Festival), is organising the 11th edition of the competition of the independent audio play scene. The livestream with online voting will be presented by the festival's media partner Radio Eins. Further information on the programme is available at www.berliner-hoerspielfestival.de.

In addition, starting on 6 June, the Labor Beethoven 2020 will be repeated as a virtual festival. Due to the corona crisis, the original festival had to be held behind closed doors. Starting immediately, the Akademie publication Sinn und Form will make texts from its archives available free of charge.

The Newsletter of the Akademie keeps subscribers informed about further digital offers and highlights.