BERLIN
Exhibitions
Virtual Wall/Reconstructing the Wall
Fifty years ago, a 3.6 metre high wall went up around West Berlin. Get a feel for what it was like to reside in a divided city this week at Kunstquartier Bethanien. An interactive 3D installation lets you stroll along the wall, look out over "no man's land," and witness historic events that took place there.
Price: Free
Location: Kunstquartier Bethanien, Mariannenplatz 2
Times: Wednesday - Sunday, 3-7pm; through August 28
Phone: 030 612 88 789
More Information: www.virtuelle-mauer-berlin.de
Music/Concerts
Audi Open Air Classical
Music from Casablanca and Breakfast at Tiffany's fills the air Thursday, while Friday night features a ukulele orchestra from the UK. This weekend's series of open-air concerts at Berlin's historic Culture Brewery includes a diverse array of musical offerings. Get in a Spanish state of mind Saturday, and enjoy a little opera on Sunday.
Price: €25 - 40
Location: Kulturbrauerei, Schönhauser Allee 36
Times: Thursday, August 18 - Sunday, August 21, 7:30pm
Reservations: 030 4431 51 51
More Information: www.klassik-open-air.de
Festivals/Conferences
Festival Über Lebenskunst - Perspectives of a Sustainable Way of Living
The "art of living" takes on new dimensions as the human race grapples with climate change. Artists, scientists, and activists present new ideas on sustainable living this weekend at the House of World Cultures. Explore Fat Koehl Architects' "city of the future," rock out to the music of Bonaparte, and take a rainwater shower.
Price: €30 (Conference Pass); €10 (Day Pass); €5 (Single Ticket)
Location: Haus der Kulturen der Welt, John-Foster-Dulles-Allee 10
Times: Wednesday, August 17 - Sunday, August 21
Phone: 030 397 870
More Information: www.ueber-lebenskunst.org
COLOGNE
Galleries/Museums
An Un/Certain Eye - Vasari 500. Italian Drawings by Leonardo, Raphael & Co
Giorgio Vasari painted frescos for the Medicis, designed Florentine loggias, renovated mediaeval churches, and wrote biographies about the artists of his time. In honour of the 500th anniversary of the Renaissance painter, architect, and art historian's birth, the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne is exhibiting a rare trove of Italian drawings. See works by Leonardo, Raphael, and Vasari himself.
Price: €8.50
Location: Wallraf-Richartz-Museum, Obenmarspforten (at the Cologne City Hall)
Times: Tuesday - Sunday, 10am-6pm; Thursday, 10am-9pm; August 19 - November 20
Phone: 0221 221 21119
More Information: www.wallraf.museum
Events
Cologne Used Bicycle Market
The best way to get around town is on two wheels. Take a stroll over to Friesenplatz Saturday and take your pick of dozens of second-hand bicycles. Then belt out the Queen song as you pedal around the city. "I want to ride my bicycle!"
Price: €5
Location: Friesenplatz
Times: Saturday, August 20, 8am-4pm
More Information: www.fahrradmarkt-koeln.de
DRESDEN
Festivals
Dresden City Festival
There's a festive atmosphere in Dresden this weekend. From an international culture market on Hauptstrasse to a mediaeval market on Königsufer, the Dresden City Festival offers an extensive range of amusements around town. Take in the splendour of a dazzling city, and celebrate summer.
Price: Free
Location: Various
Times: Friday, August 19 to Sunday, August 21
More Information: www.dresdner-stadtfest.com
FRANKFURT
Festivals
African Culture Festival Solmspark 2011
In addition to a traditional crafts market, speciality food stalls, and a drumming workshop, the African Culture Festival at Solmspark commemorates all victims of racism and state violence. Listen to impassioned speakers, dance to the music of live reggae bands, and get your groove on in the dancehall "party zone."
Price: Free
Location: Solmspark, Rödelheim
Times: Friday, August 19 - Sunday, August 21
More Information: www.senegal-verein.de
Galleries/Museums
Exhibition Opening - Ragnar Kjartansson and Contemporary Photographic Art from Iceland"
Iceland is the guest country at this year's Frankfurt Book Fair. In celebration, the Frankfurter Kunstverein presents a duo of exhibitions of Icelandic photography and video art, which opens Thursday. See Ragnar Kjartansson's videos, installations, and photo series in the artists' first solo exhibition in Germany. Then gaze at dramatic images of the North Atlantic island nation taken by emerging and established photo-media artists from Iceland.
Price: Free (Opening); €6 (Regular Admission)
Location: Frankfurter Kunstverein, Steinernes Haus on the Römerberg, Markt 44
Times: Thursday, August 18, 7pm (Opening); Tuesday - Friday, 11am-7pm; Thursday, 11am-9pm; Saturday & Sunday, 10am-7pm; through October 16 (Regular Hours)
Phone: 069 219 3140
More Information: www.fkv.de
HAMBURG
Music/Concerts
Music Outdoors - Les Trucs
The Frankfurt based duo Les Trucs unleashes its no holds barred brand of maniacal music Thursday at Kampnagel. Brace yourselves for the jarring sound collage of heavy metal beats, operatic harmonics, and hyper synthesizer cascades. You'll be invigorated to say the least.
Price: Free
Location: Kampnagel, Jarrestrasse 20
Times: Thursday, August 18, 8pm
More Information: www.kampnagel.de
MUNICH
Festivals
Olympia Park Summer Festival
Feel like a kid again this weekend as you spin around on the tea cups, chow down on a bratwurst in a Bavarian village atmosphere, or kick back at the beach bar. The Summer Festival at Olympia Park comes to a close Sunday, so go soon, and get in as many rides as you can. It's summertime! And the living is easy.
Price: Free
Location: Munich Olympia Park, Spiridon-Louis-Ring 21
Times: Daily, Noon-11:30pm, Sunday, 11am-11:30pm; through Sunday, August 21
More Information: www.impark.de
Galleries/Museums
Heart on the Street
Street art and the urban environment play major roles in the work of the ten artists involved in this art show. Mixing mediums such as painting, photography, graphics, and video, the pieces present the relationship between street art and society.
Price: Free
Location: Kunstarkaden - art space of the city of Munich, Sparkassenstrasse 3
Times: Tuesday - Saturday, 1-7pm; through Saturday, August 27
More Information: www.octopusartprojects.eu
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