Fotoeins Fotografie

location bifurcation, place vs. home

Posts tagged ‘Jewish Museum Berlin’

Brandenburger Tor, Brandenburg Gate, Pariser Platz, Berlin, Germany, fotoeins.com

Germany’s urban G-E-M-S: Berlin

A travel writer once asked me: how would I describe Germany? Start with geography: lush forests, lakes and rivers, jagged Alps to the south, and open seas to the north. But that’s only the surface, where deep underneath there’s rich artistic and cultural heritage; and critical lessons from times of unimaginable ignorance, cruelty, and tragedy.

Her cities also form a large part of the German picture, and I’m very fond of her five largest cities. For every city, I have a selection of G-E-M-S: one Green space (G, Grünanlage); a place to Eat (E, Essen gehen); Museum (M); and something Special (S, Sondertipp). I’ve already written about Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, and Frankfurt am Main.

The German capital city of Berlin marks the final part of my series.

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Shalechet, Shalekhet, Fallen Leaves, Menashe Kadishman, Jewish Museum Berlin, Berlin, Germany, Deutschland, fotoeins.com

My Berlin: Shalekhet (Fallen Leaves), Jewish Museum

The Jüdisches Museum (Jewish Museum) in Berlin’s Kreuzberg district is one of the most visited museums in the German capital. Millions from around the world have visited the museum since its opening in late-2001. With the unique architectural vision and building design by Daniel Libeskind, the museum does not set aside the history of the Jewish community within Germany as being separate from the history of the country as a whole. Instead, there is conscious effort by Libeskind and the Museum to have visitors consider how the historical, cultural, art, literature, music, intellectual, scientific, and economic contributions from the Jewish community are tied inextricably with the history of Germany over the span of two millennia. These very issues and questions are now also driving discussions about the present state and evolution of the Turkish and other expatriate communities within Germany.

One sculpture in particular is both poignant and disturbing.

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