Haus der Kulturen der Welt

Description

In Berlin’s government quarter, the Haus der Kulturen der Welt (HKW) serves as a central forum for international contemporary arts and current debates. It presents productions and events from around the world and hosts discussions on contemporary issues.

Since 1989 the HKW has been housed in the former Kongresshalle on the Spree riverbank in the Großer Tiergarten; the distinctive building is popularly known as the „Schwangere Auster“. On the site, before World War II, the Institut für Sexualwissenschaft bore witness to a significant research history; within the building there are commemorative spaces such as the Magnus-Hirschfeld-Bar and the Lili-Elbe-Garten. The Kongresshalle was created as the American contribution to the Internationale Bauausstellung 1957 and was conceived at the time as a representation of Western modernity and freedom of speech.

The institution’s sponsorship goes back to a GmbH founded at the end of 1988; today the HKW is part of the Kulturveranstaltungen des Bundes in Berlin GmbH, which among other responsibilities oversees the Internationale Filmfestspiele Berlin. The HKW receives regular funding from the Auswärtigen Amt and from the Bundesbeauftragten für Kultur und Medien.

Building history shapes the institution: in 1980 an external roof collapsed due to material fatigue; subsequent renovations led to the reopening on the occasion of the city’s 750th anniversary in 1987. A comprehensive partial refurbishment was completed in 2019, intended to preserve the character of the 1987 Totalsanierung.

Programmatically, the programme is divided into the areas of literature, society and science; visual arts and film; and music and performing arts. The house collaborates with national and international universities, museums and cultural institutions. Its distinctive architecture — with an exhibition hall, concert hall, theatre, conference rooms, production spaces, an academy and a permanent radio station — determines the formats and venues for presentation.

Originally launched with a German–American focus, the house expanded its profile from the late 1980s to include non‑Western perspectives. From the mid‑1990s non‑European curators took on a large part of the programme; this opening also sparked debates about new forms of Eurocentrism. Since 2013 large‑scale, interdisciplinary long‑term projects have been developed, including the Anthropozän-Projekt, the four‑year project 100 Jahre Gegenwart (2016–2019) as well as the project The New Alphabet, which has been running since 2019.