From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:17 PM

Alissa Walser is a painter, translator, author — and the daughter of Martin Walser, one of the giants of German literature.Now the winner of the 1992 Bachmann prize has stepped out of her father’s shadow for good, with a novel about the soul of a young woman.

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:16 PM

A ring of laurel trees from all the continents forms the basic idea for the new Botanical Garden in Shanghai.German architect Christoph Valentien drew up the plans which accompany the EXPO 2010. They consist of 35 theme areas combining European and Chinese gardening traditions. Meanwhile, they p...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:16 PM

Rolf Bauerdick is in his early fifties, and he’s taken the book markets of the world by storm with his first novel «Madonna on the Moon».No wonder — it's an enchanting work: whimsical, anarchistic and highly entertaining, worthy of the success it's earned. We visited the photogra...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:16 PM

Is Berlin still sexy? After twenty years in the vanguard of the zeitgeist, the dust is starting to settle in the capital’s art scene. Galleries still come and go, and insiders say that creative types will soon be heading off to pastures new - the next happening cities such as Warsaw and Istanbul...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:16 PM

TOP 3: "Das war ich nicht" – A German banker in America in Kristof Magnusson’s highly acclaimed new novel TOP 2: Botticelli, Superstar – The exhibition at Frankfurt's Städel Museum sets visitor records TOP 1: The Magic of Dance – Malakhov stages the enchanting ballet "La Peri"

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:15 PM

As the 6th Berlin Biennale for contemporary art kicks off, a special edition of ARTS.21 takes a look at the current state of the capital’s art scene. Our reporters check out the latest trends and discoveries at the event, which has become one of the most important dates on the German art calendar.

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:15 PM

Greece, the birthplace of democracy and cultural hothouse has needed a massive financial injection to keep it on the European path. What effect has that had on the artists and their work situation, their art, their relationship to the state and their pride?ARTS.21 went there to find out...in the...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:15 PM

Street child, punk, fashion designer and bouncer, Berlin artist Marc Brandenburg has a colorful past behind him. These days, his black-white drawings are exhibited in some of the top galleries and museums, including New York’s Museum of Modern Art.Marc Brandenburg's latest exhibition in Ber...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:14 PM

In an exclusive interview, artists Damien Hirst and Michael Joo will be talking about their new shows in Berlin and their thoughts on Germany and the German capital.

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:14 PM

Our favorites of the week TOP 3: "Atemlos", or "Breathless" – The new album by musical duo Schiller TOP 2: "The Devil’s Tragedy" – An enthralling operatic production in Munich TOP 1: Joseph Maria Olbrich – Architect and designer around the turn of the 20th century

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:14 PM

A new glass and steel roof acts as a cover for art from the 19th century to modern times. After the Green Vault and the palace Dresden has now paid for the renovation of the Albertinum museum.To mark the 450th anniversary of the Baroque city they have build a modern house which acts as a bridge b...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:14 PM

An exhibition at the Ahlen Art Museum traces the history of bathing and depicts it as a primal urge.The works of art on show reflect changing perceptions of the body, beauty and intimacy, and provide a broad historical and thematic overview of bathing and bathrooms. "Intimacy!" features 150 work...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:09 PM

We visit two Biennale artists at home: Petrit Halilaj from Pristina and Marie Voignier from Paris. Like many artists, they divide their time between their home countries and Berlin.

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:08 PM

Philip Kerr of Scotland is in the top league of detective novel authors. Many of his thrillers are set in Germany: this time in Berlin’s Hotel Adlon at the beginning of the 1930s.An American hotel guest dies, a Jewish boxer is found floating lifelessly in the canal, and the Americans want to boy...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:08 PM

Not only are there quite a number of museums among the spectacular new building projects in Germany these days; many of them are also attracting record numbers of visitors.What’s behind this development? Slick marketing? A boom in the tourism industry? Or is it just that in these increasingly unc...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:07 PM

There’s no escaping the financial crisis...even on the silver screen. 22 years after Michael Douglas stared in the movie "Wall Street" Hollywood has revisited the world of high finance in the sequel, "Wall Street - Money Never Sleeps." The German entry "The City Below" is also set in the banking...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:07 PM

Just as it takes a well-tailored dress to show off a good figure to its best advantage, the new Folkwang Museum in Essen is now being cast in the best possible light by British architect David Chipperfield’s new extension.The Pritzker Prize winner, whose projects include the recently restored an...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:06 PM

This summer our ARTS.21 reporters set off on a Grand Tour in a Beetle convertible.Our first stop is a cloister in Germany’s far north, the site of the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Music Festival. 20 years ago, it was still an insider's tip for great music in unusual locations; today it’s one of t...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:06 PM

They are all curious about exciting contemporary art. The Federal Art Gallery in Bonn has invited 15 art collectors to contribute pieces to an exhibition titled just that, "Neugierig", or "Curious".ARTS.21 was there to sample some of the work on show, and gain interesting insights into the peopl...

From: sevenload on Sun, Aug 22 2010 9:05 PM

A wild hairdo, a striped T-shirt, and a silly expression: snapshots by Gunnar Hämmerle. He focuses on street style and uploads his photos onto the Internet.Now the art of the Germany’s best-known fashion blogger is to enjoy a high-profile stage. The NRW Forum in Düsseldorf is hosting the biggest...