BERLIN’S HUMBOLDT FORUM DETAILS DECEMBER OPENING PLANS
The eagerly awaited Humboldt Forum, Europe’s largest culture complex, which occupies a sprawling reconstructed royal palace at Berlin’s center and is home to the city-state’s ethnological collections, announced today that it would be opening its main floor to the public beginning December 17. Further opening will take place in three phases across 2021.
The opening comes more than a year after its expected 2019 inauguration and following numerous setbacks, including construction delays forced by Covid-19, a fire, and controversy surrounding its ability to address Berlin’s colonial history in a socially responsible manner.
The $700 million institution, which has been in the works for nearly a decade and comprises some 323,000 square feet, will open with its own architecture as the focus, with visitors able to wander through its spectacular public spaces, including the Schlüter Courtyard; the atrium, with its 115-foot-high ceiling; and the Central Passage. An experiential exhibition intended for children will open on January 3, along with two shows focusing on environmental concerns and the city of Berlin, respectively.
The Humboldt Forum’s first full-scale exhibition, exploring the ivory trade, will launch in May. The west wing of the institution’s Ethnologisches Museum (Ethnological Museum) and the Museum für Asiatische Kunst (Asian Art Museum), together home to some 20,000 objects will open on the second and third floors in the summer, with the east wing opening near year-end.
Once it is fully up and running, the Humboldt Forum expects to host numerous events, including guided tours and talks, and will feature cafes, shops, and restaurants. Named for brothers Alexander and Wilhelm von Humboldt, renowned German thinkers of the nineteenth century, the complex is centered around three themes, which director Hartmut Dorger described in a statement as “the history and architecture of the site, the Humboldt brothers and colonialism and coloniality.”
