Besides seeing some nature at Krumme Lanke, my last trip to Berlin was full of culture. And oddly, it ended up being full of Andy Warhol pieces. I was there to see a bit of theatre, in the form of the Chamaeleon’s lastest show, then I went to the Helmut Newton gallery, before spending a lazy afternoon at the Hamburger Bahnhof.
The Hamburger Bahnhof is a large and thriving contemporary art museum located in the most gorgeous building. The building itself was once the terminus of the Berlin-Hamburg railway built in a neoclassical style. It’s also one of the oldest surviving train stations in Berlin. It was so lovingly converted into a museum, preserving its most interesting features from its former life as a train station, including some grand, sweeping halls with the most wonderful large, iron bracketed, high ceilings. Because of its past-life, the museum has a whopping 10,000 square meters of space at its disposal.
The tagline of the museum is ‘Museum für Gegenwart’ or ‘Museum of Now’. I found it a somewhat more accessible version of the Saatchi Gallery in London. (Which can undoubtedly leave some viewers cold if they are not fans of modern art.) Whereas the Hamburger Bahnhof does a great job of mixing in the truly abstract with some less recondite pieces.
I hadn’t researched either the permanent collections or the visiting exhibitions before my visit, preferring the element of surprise when it came to visiting the museum. So you can just imagine my delight when I turned a corner and came face-to-face with Andy Warhol’s famous (and enormous) painting of Mao. Like many millennials, I am a fan of pop-art. I was familiar with the painting but I had no idea about the scale of the thing. As you can see in some of the photos before, it’s large. And that is but the tip of the iceberg in terms of their Warhol collection. (The portrait of Elvis is probably Warhol’s second most famous work in their collection.)
In the past, the museum has hosted some incredible temporary collections so it’s a must-visit for any art fans in Berlin. I’d certainly fancy a re-visit the next time that I am in Berlin. They also offer some incredibly interesting sounding tours for adults that you can pre-book. My interest was especially piqued by their art and politics tour.
The museum had a scattering of art students doing some sketching whilst I was there, but overall it was mostly empty which seems surprising for a Saturday afternoon. It’s definitely a tranquil way to while away an afternoon in Berlin
It is located at Invalidenstraße 50-51, 10557 Berlin. Tickets are 14 EUR. Concessions are 7 EUR.
Have you ever visited the Hamburger Bahnhof?
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