Opening – Shifting Perspectives: If the Berlin Wind Blows My Flag 

The exhibition explores how the DAAD Artists-in-Berlin Program (Berliner Künstlerprogramm des DAAD, BKP) operated during the Cold War, tracing the interplay between political and cultural institutions and artistic practices. The BKP aimed, on the one hand, to bring international artists to West Berlin in order to overcome the city’s “cultural isolation,” and, on the other, to provide opportunities for artists to engage with a more international audience—many of whom also felt isolated by the political and cultural constraints of their own countries. Numerous participants came from Central and Eastern Europe, crossing the divide created by the Iron Curtain, to reach a city that was itself the most potent symbol of that very division. In addition to works by artists who participated in the residency program, the exhibition also features art practitioners who, for various reasons, were unable to benefit from the same opportunity—even though they would have fully deserved a place there. The incorporation of contemporary artists’ perspectives through new works, alongside insights gained from the institution’s archives, reinforces this critical approach to the history and legacy of the BKP program.

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As part of the opening, we will present Hajnal Németh’s performance Freedom Trap.

On December 13 at 3 p.m., the exhibition’s curators, Nóra Lukács and Melanie Roumiguière, will lead a guided tour.

The two events mark the launch of the Freedom Trap series, presented in connection with the exhibition and organized in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut Budapest and the Blinken OSA Archivum.