Berghain to host art installation inspired by “Berlin's origins as a swamp”

Berghain will host an art installation inspired by “Berlin’s origins as a swamp” later this year.

After hosting a number of “sound exhibitions” and reopening as a gallery amid the coronavirus pandemic, Berlin clubbing institute Berghain has shared details of the latest installation headed for the club’s cavernous halls.

Commissioned by Light Art Space (LAS), an immersive installation that “leads us to Berlin’s origins as a swamp formed by a glacial valley over 10,000 years old” from Danish artist Jakob Kudsk Steensen will be showcased in Halle am Berghain from the 10th July until the 26th September.

“Kudsk Steensen’s projects are rooted in extensive field research, as well as collaborations with biologists, historians, composers and writers,” LAS said. “For his LAS commission, Kudsk Steensen is researching wetlands such as Germany’s Spreewald region and documenting their ecosystem and soil layers. The artist is also working with the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin to use their extensive archive of extinct species, and sounds of insects and amphibians from Berlin and its surrounding landscapes.

“By combining his recordings from the wetlands with research on extinct animal species, the artist builds a bridge between us and the history beneath our feet – Kudsk Steensen describes this as ‘touching time’. In this way, the Halle am Berghain will be transformed into a portal in which relics of the Ice Age connect to present-day wetlands – lost worlds revived in the present day.”

You can find out more about the installation here.

Earlier this week, Berlin’s Club Commission unveiled a six-point plan to reopen the city’s venues.