ARRIVING – building dwelling living

The project “ARRIVING – building dwelling living” by the Heimatmuseum Bernau focuses on the expanding communities located on the outskirts of Berlin. In view of immigration, new arrivals and the changes they bring, more and more people are asking themselves what one’s “hometown” means to them. In this project, the museum teams up with local residents and institutions to examine the history, present situation and possible future of their city. In four artistic events, the project will investigate four types of buildings which shape the character of Bernau and shed light on its history: the two-storey pre-fab apartment blocks in the medieval centre of town, the worker’s housing settlement from the 1920s, a boarding school complex designed by the Bauhaus architect Hannes Meyer and the former military clothing and equipment facility built during the Nazi years.

A specific form of investigation will be chosen for each artistic episode, each matched to the buildings’ unique architectural features. Two women artists are collaborating with site-specific partners and protagonists in hopes of building on their existing knowledge and experience. For example, in cooperation with the local housing association, they plan to organise film presentations in living rooms throughout Bernau. Another project will form a sound collective with users and neighbours of the Bauhaus building under the direction of a composer. And another plans to create a “city of dreams” consisting of model houses on the grounds of the former military clothing facility where Bernau’s residents can design their personal visions of the future.

Through the mutual examination of specific topics, the residents and local institutions will forge new connections which will continue to have an impact after the temporary artistic actions have concluded and establish the Heimatmuseum as a central point of communication and contact.

Partners: AWO Kreisverband, Verein Baudenkmal Bundesschule Bernau, WOBAU Bernau, BeSt Bernauer Stadtmarketing and others