Berlin personalities

Above all, it is the people who have shaped the image of the city of Berlin - from its beginnings to the present day. Get to know well-known and lesser-known Berlin personalities whose lives were inextricably linked with the city or still are today.

Helga Goetze

Many Berliners still remember her provocative actions in front of the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church and the TU Berlin: Helga Goetze (1922-2008) was an artist, writer, poet and political activist whose life was just as multifaceted as her practice. It was also characterised by duality: Goetze was a housewife who found her personal and artistic calling later in life, yet never referred to herself an artist.

Lyonel Feininger. Retrospektive

The German-American artist Lyonel Feininger (1871-1956) is a classic of modern art. The Schirn Kunsthalle in Frankfurt am Main is dedicating the first major retrospective in Germany for over 25 years to the painter and graphic artist. A special loan from the painting collection of the Stadtmuseum Berlin is included.

African American Performers 1877-1933

From the Jubilee Singers to Jazz: African American Performers and Musicians in Berlin, 1877-1933.

Louis Douglas

A multi-talented dancer, actor, director, comedian, choreographer, singer, screenwriter and producer, he spent thirty years on European stages.

Dora Dean

A dance and fashion icon, Dora Dean won over countless fans at the turn of the last century. Berliners flocked to see her and new style: the Cakewalk.

Arabella Fields

Constantly touring, performing in a dizzying array of styles and winning fans across the continent, Arabella Field’s life was paradigmatic of that of the variety star at the turn of the last century.