Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
go's Millennium Park, and Los Angeles' Walt Disney Concert Hall. Gehry fans might be
surprised at the DZ Bank building's low profile. Structures on Pariser Platz are designed to
be bland so as not to draw attention away from the Brandenburg Gate. (The glassy facade
of the Academy of Arts, next to Gehry's building, is controversial for drawing attention to
itself.) For your fix of the good old Gehry, step into the lobby and check out its undulating
interior. It's a fish—and you feel like you're both inside and outside of it. The architect's
vision is explained on a nearby plaque. The best view of the roof of Gehry's creation is from
the Reichstag dome.
• Enter the Academy of Arts (Akademie der Kunst), next door to Gehry's building. Its doors
lead to a lobby (with a small food counter, daily 10:00-20:00), which leads directly to the
vast...
This Holocaust memorial, consisting of 2,711 gravestone-like pillars (called “stelae”) and
completedin2005,isanessentialstopforanyvisittoBerlin.Itwasthefirstformal,German
government-sponsoredHolocaustmemorial.JewishAmericanarchitectPeterEisenmanwon
the competition for the commission (and built it on time and on budget—€27 million). It's
been criticized for focusing on just one of the groups targeted by the Nazis, but the German
government has promised to erect memorials to other victims.
Cost and Hours:
Free, memorial always open; information center open Tue-Sun
10:00-20:00, Oct-March until 19:00, closed Mon year-round; last entry 45 minutes before
closing, S-Bahn: Brandenburger Tor or Potsdamer Platz, tel. 030/2639-4336,
www.stiftung-
denkmal.de
. The €4 audioguide augments the experience.
VisitingtheMemorial:
Thepillarsaremadeofhollowconcrete,eachchemicallycoated
foreasyremovalofgraffiti.(Notably,thechemicalcoatingwasdevelopedbyasubsidiaryof
theformerIGFarbengroup—thecompanyinfamousforsupplyingtheZyklonBgasusedin
Nazi death camps.) The number of pillars isn't symbolic of anything; it's simply how many
fit on the provided land.
Once you enter the memorial, notice that people seem to appear and disappear between
the columns, and that no matter where you are, the exit always seems to be up. Is it a
labyrinth...a symbolic cemetery...and intentionally disorienting? It'sentirely upto the visitor
to derive the meaning, while pondering this horrible chapter in human history.
The pondering takes place under the sky. For the learning, go under the field of concrete
pillars to the state-of-the-art
information center
(there may be a short line because of the
mandatory security check). Inside, a thought-provoking exhibit (well-explained in English)
studies the Nazi system of extermination and humanizes the victims, while also providing
space for silent reflection. In the Starting Hall, exhibits trace the historical context of the
