Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien is the public gallery of the district of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg, housed in the Bethanien on Mariannenplatz. Its exhibitions lean towards art with a political edge: migration, gender, the city and who gets to shape it. Entry is always free, and the gallery is open every day until 8pm, which makes it one of the easiest places in Berlin to drop into after work.
The building itself is part of the story. The Bethanien was built in the 1840s as a hospital run by Protestant deaconesses, with a twin-towered façade facing the square; the young Theodor Fontane worked in its pharmacy, and the room is still known by his name. When the hospital closed at the start of the 1970s, the building was squatted and saved from demolition, and it became a centre for artists and social projects. The Künstlerhaus Bethanien, the international studio programme, began here in 1974. In 1976 the artist Ulay brought Spitzweg's Poor Poet, which he had just taken from the Neue Nationalgalerie, to the Künstlerhaus on his way to a Kreuzberg flat; our news story tells that episode.
Visiting
- Hours: daily, 10am–8pm
- Entry: free
- Access: the building and exhibition rooms are step-free
- Current show: Tanja Ostojić: ENCOUNTERS – On Bodies, Borders, Resistance, until 14 February 2027, with an artist talk on 26 November 2026
- How long: 30–60 minutes. Many shows include video, so allow time.
Getting there
From U-Bahn Kottbusser Tor it is about ten minutes on foot via Adalbertstraße. Bus 140 stops at Mariannenplatz, and the M29 runs along Oranienstraße a few minutes away.
Nearby
The HAU Hebbel am Ufer is 15 minutes away by U-Bahn for an evening of theatre or dance. The East Side Gallery is across the Spree over the Oberbaumbrücke.