The Berggruen Museum is growing
Press release from 05/30/2008
The Berggruen Museum in Berlin-Charlottenburg is to be extended according to the plans of architects Kuehn Malvezzi. This was announced today as the result of a selection process. The extension is linked to over seventy high-calibre long-term loans that the Berggruen family is making available to the museum. Bettina Berggruen and the four children of the collector and patron Heinz Berggruen, who died last February, are present at today's presentation of the design.
Hermann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation: "I am delighted that the Berggruen family is continuing Heinz Berggruen's commitment and work for Berlin through their generosity. Following the structural expansion, which the Foundation will be able to realise with the support of the federal government and the state of Berlin, the Museum Berggruen, this jewel of Berlin's museum landscape, will shine even brighter in international comparison."
The family had already emphasised shortly after his death that they were not only very interested in continuing to support the Berggruen Museum, but also in expanding the collection. The new works by Picasso, Matisse, Cézanne and Klee will perfectly complement the existing permanent exhibition "Picasso and His Time", which has attracted over 1.5 million visitors from all over the world since its opening in 1996. As a commitment to Berlin and the museum, the family also founded the "Förderkreis des Museum Berggruen e.V." in July 2007, which will support and accompany the museum's exhibition activities. In addition to the Berggruen family, its members include Michael Blu¬menthal, Peter Raue, Michael Naumann and Simon de Pury, Klaus-Dieter Lehmann and Peter-Klaus Schuster.
In order to organise and present the enlarged holdings of the Berggruen Museum in an appropriate manner, the museum, which is housed in the western Stüler Building (Schloßstr. 1), will be expanded. The State of Berlin is making the neighbouring property at Spandauer Damm 17 available to the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation permanently and free of charge. In future, the two neighbouring buildings will be used as a single structural and functional unit. The main entrance with ticket office, cloakroom and bookshop will remain in Stülerbau West as before. The building at Spandauer Damm 17 will provide around 800 square metres of additional space for museum purposes. Once completed, the extension will provide exhibition space on three floors. The top floor will also provide additional space for exhibition and support functions, which were previously inadequate. The Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation will bear the costs for the conversion (4.2 million euros) as well as the running costs. The museum will remain open during the construction period (end of 2009 - end of 2011).
The unanimously selected design concept by Kuehn Malvezzi fulfils the aim of opening up the building at Spandauer Damm 17 and creating a connection to the western Stüler building in an emphatically restrained manner that is sensitive to the needs of the listed building. The single-storey, glass connecting structure contrasts with the neighbouring historic stone buildings, but skilfully mediates between the interior and exterior as a belvedere. It fits discreetly between the listed buildings, which continue to stand alone. Its footprint has been reduced to a minimum. The high-quality trees in the garden area, which will also be used for the museum in future, will be retained. The design concept was convincing due to its clear and minimalist approach in a deliberately contemporary architectural language.
The architecture firm Kuehn Malvezzi has already successfully remodelled the Rieck Halls for the foundation and connected them to the Hamburger Bahnhof. From autumn 2008, the Kunstgewerbemuseum Berlin at the Kulturforum will receive a new foyer and a presentation facility for the fashion and costume collection according to the architects' plans. Their extension of the Berggruen Museum will add a new highlight to the cultural ensemble of Charlottenburg.