After having left a mark in 2013 with his eye-catching street art pastings “Wrinkles of the City” all over Berlin, the world-wide famous French artist JR has reappeared in Berlin, with a new inspiring installation.
In order to celebrate Germany’s Reunification Day on the 3rd of October, JR recreated a representative scene to commemorate the fall of the Berlin Wall and the celebration of freedom. The installation is a photo collage set on the west side of the Brandenburg Gate, whose visual impact is remarkable, given its more than 25 meters high. The strength of the work of art is given by its composition: a picture from the Reunification Day representing people standing together on the top of the Wall has been built in front of the Brandenburg Gate.
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by Giulio | Art
It’s safe to say that when I arrived in Berlin at 19, I knew very little in general. In the two years I’ve spent here, there have been times when I fooled myself I’ve obtained some general knowledge I could apply to reality – and time after time found myself utterly perplexed at yet another of life’s intricacies that Berlin exists to accentuate. And then it dawned on me – the only certainty I’ve experienced is the love for this city. The History Phone is my attempt to pay it forward – join us for a journey to discover a few of the lesser known facts from Berlin’s past that will add some sparkle to your everyday walk though familiar streets.
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by Michalina | Stories, Videos
This is the story of an extraordinary Berliner. His childhood in a completely destroyed Post World War II Berlin definitely shaped him. In that period Wolfgang Sadowski made of, at first, simple and seemingly insignificant actions, like helping his mother cook a hot meal, an act of rebellion against the misery and decay that surrounded him. Because, in the end, our little victories will help us make it through the day. Maybe that’s why he grew up unwilling to retreat and with the ambition to conquer every moment of his life.
This passionate man whose commitment and love for sports and, especially, weight lifting has made him maintain a positive attitude throughout his life and kept him young and vital until today. Weight lifting is presented to us as a metaphor for survival, persistence and overcoming the toughest times. And accompanying the strong visuals a beautiful and delicate soundtrack that allows us to immerse ourselves in the narration and that guides us through the daily life of Wolfgang.
But this is not my story to tell. This is Wolfgang Sadowski’s story. So grab a cup of your favorite hot beverage and let yourself enjoy this short film made by Felix and Isabella Hoffmann about Wolfgang Sadowski, the strongest man of Berlin.
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by Amanda Artiaga | People, Videos
Just opposite the railroad tracks of the far out S-Bahn station Schönholz, obviously visible to its passers-by, though half disappearing into a thin, sparse forrest – the newly discovered 80 remaining meters of the original Berlin Wall.
Just when we thought, now slowly, after 28 years and 3 months after the Mauerfall, there is nothing new to be said about the German division and its physical leftovers. But a few days ago we found out that – flipping hell – colorful remains of the historical first version wall, that physically and ideologically divided Berlin, were identified and unveiled as such only this February. We had to see this with our own eyes and made a little excursion there last weekend.
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by Franziska | Stories
Have you ever heard about the rubble women, or Trümmerfrauen in German? They were the bold women and girls who stepped in to reconstruct German cities after the severe destruction wrought by the second world war. Read on to get inspired by their courage and resilience.
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by Michalina | Stories
photo: Katja Hentschel
10 Years of iHeartBerlin! How did we make it so far? I wonder sometimes when I think back to all the crazy shit that happened in the last 10 years. And especially when I look at Frank and me who were two very different people back then. Of course, everybody was a bit different 10 years ago… but believe me… we were unrecognizably different.
Not to show you how much we changed, but rather to show how it does not matter how old you are and how cool you look to make amazing projects happen, I will guide you back to the dawns of time and when Frank and I were still two little puppies playing with bits and bites and with no idea whatsoever that we will stick around so long with each other delivering to you the best stories about our beloved city.
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by Claudio | Stories
photo: Philipp von Recklinghausen / bobsairport
The true difference a book can make, in a time when it’s pretty much all said and done, is have a clear, authentic voice, and this is exactly what ‘Berlin Heartbeats’ has. ‘Berlin Heartbeats’ is a collection of intense photo stories and essays, of people who experienced the 90’s in Berlin and the time right after the wall fell until the early 2000s, and a new reality revealed itself to them; “old structures dissolved giving space for improvisation and experiment”. Frank, genuine perspectives and testimonies, not of a romanticized Berlin, but of a city as experienced by them, giving raw, simple, but magical accounts. You see the abandoned and run-down areas of the once divided city, you see revolts in the streets, the crazy underground art and music scene, alternative living projects, street parades and so much more.
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by Stella | Books
Leute! Get your exploring caps on! Considering your next sunny-day excursion, and you’re in a princessy mood? I got just the thing for you! The Pfaueninsel (Peacock Island. YES, Peacock Island!) is a right-out-of-a-fairytale destination, super close to Berlin and ready for you to explore.
A nature conservation area since 1924, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and accessed only by ferry, this cute little island is upon the Havel river, and it’s got a long and rich history, dating back to the 17th century. To help you do your homework, let me share some of the highlights of the island’s history.
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by Stella | Wannsee
photo: Norman Poznan
How can you live in a building having such a history? One of my friends whatsapped me, after I told him about my neighbor, Flora Friedel Brandt. I get that a lot from people, how can I live in a city like Berlin, as a Jew, as an Israeli. How can I live in a city that didn’t want us before, that sent Flora away from here.
Flora Friedel Brandt was born as Flora Friedel Silber, on October 11, 1866. Flora was a Jew, a Berliner. Fire, she was living in Schöneberg in West Berlin. Then she moved to Wedding, “Little Turkey” of today. Finally, she had moved to Pappelallee 3 in Prenzlauer Berg at the east side of Berlin. Where she lived until Tuesday, June 16, 1942, when Nazi soldiers entered her building to take her. The soldiers evacuated Flora from her home, and sent her 260 kilometers south, to Theresienstadt Ghetto, in modern Czechoslovakia.
Theresienstadt Ghetto was flora’s new home for three months, until September 19, 1942. On that day, along with many other Jews, she was crammed into a beef freight train. The train was heading to a destination unknown to any of its passengers.
I find it hard to believe that Flora trusted the soldiers who told her she was heading to a new work camp, as she was boarding this crammed freight train, on a Saturday, going about 700 kilometers east, to the Treblinka Death Camp.
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by Guest Author | Stories
photo: Bundesarchiv, Bild 102-09700 / CC BY-SA 3.0
The First of May, that’s when there is a big street party in Berlin, right? Kind of. While the MyFest in Kreuzberg really feels like a big street festival with food stands, concerts and DJs playing in the streets it wasn’t always quite as cheerful and fun-oriented. The Labor Day has its origin in the USA in the late 19th century where it was among other things about the introduction of the 8h workday. There were attempts to establish it Germany in 1919, but it wasn’t until the Nazi time in the 30s that it became an official public holiday that it remained until today. Over the decades it changed its character from festive parades, political demonstrations to violent revolts. Here in Berlin the First of May was associated with aggressive protests, massive police force and burning cars in Friedrichshain and Kreuzberg until the late 2010s. The actual meaning of it feels pretty much lost by now when you look at what’s going on at the MyFest at present day even though there is still enough to protest and rebel against.
Below a photography review of 100 years of the First of May in Berlin.
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by Frank | Stories
