KW INSTITUTE CLOSES UNTIL JANUARY 2017
According to Laurie Rojas at the Art Newspaper, Berlin’s KW Institute has closed its doors until January to allow for restructuring and refurbishment. The city of Berlin doubled KW’s funding this year, but the building in the Mitte district went dark in September after the Ninth Berlin Biennale.
The restructuring is aimed at achieving greater autonomy for both the institution—now directed by Krist Gruijthuijsen—and the biennial, under the direction of Gabriele Horn. Gruijthuijsen stated: “Both institutions achieved international relevance over the past decades . . . For us, it has been a logical consequence to rethink the organizational and financial structure to maintain the future sustainability of both institutions.”
KW will reopen on January 19, 2017, with some improvements to the building and the return of the Pogo Bar, which will host events every Thursday in a space designed by the Los Angeles–based artist Robert Wilhite. A grant from the Berlin Lottery Foundation, which owns the building, will fund additional renovations before the 2018 Berlin Biennale.
