The Akademie der Künste is one of Europe's oldest arts institutions and today a public forum for art, architecture, literature, music, film and performance. Elector Friedrich III, later King Friedrich I of Prussia, founded it in 1696. During the division of the city there were two academies, one in the East and one in the West. They merged on 1 October 1993, and the Akademie now has about 425 members across six sections. Besides exhibitions, readings, concerts and talks it runs a large archive of artists' estates.
It works from two buildings. On Pariser Platz, next to the Brandenburg Gate, Günter Behnisch's glass building opened in 2005 and incorporates the exhibition halls Ernst von Ihne built for the academy in 1907. Beneath it lies the Bilderkeller, a former coal cellar painted by young East Berlin artists at carnival parties in 1957 and 1958, which can only be seen on a guided tour. On Hanseatenweg in the Hansaviertel, Werner Düttmann's low brick-and-concrete complex of 1958–60, formerly the West Berlin academy, holds the larger exhibition halls and an auditorium.
Visiting
- Buildings: both open daily 10am–8pm; exhibition hours are set per show. Closed 24 and 31 December.
- Tickets: at the desks in both buildings (1 € booking fee) or online without the fee. Severely disabled visitors get in free, with a companion where the pass allows.
- Cafés: Café Liebermann at Pariser Platz and Café Düttmann at Hanseatenweg, Tuesday to Sunday 11am–6pm.
- Coming up: a tour of the Bilderkeller on Wednesday 2 December 2026, part of a weekly series. At Hanseatenweg, the exhibition Metaxy: Zwischen Zerstörung und Wiederaufbau runs until 6 December 2026.
Getting there
Pariser Platz: S+U Brandenburger Tor is right by the building. Hanseatenweg: U9 Hansaplatz is a few minutes' walk, S-Bahn Bellevue about ten minutes through the Hansaviertel.
Nearby
From Pariser Platz, the Neue Nationalgalerie and the Kulturforum are about 20 minutes on foot through the Tiergarten. The Bauhaus's last years in Berlin are another chapter of the city's art politics.