Starting soon: Berlin Summer University of the Arts

Develop your artistic practice further, connect with international artists, and create new spaces for artistic exchange together at the Berlin Summer University of the Arts 2024, hosted by the Berlin University of the Arts (UdK). Starting in June, we offer over 30 courses in Fine Arts, Design, Music, Sound Arts, and Performing Arts as well as interdisciplinary formats.

This year’s theme Territories and Interfaces centres around the city of Berlin as the venue, territory, and object of artistic research. We will trace demarcation lines and boundaries in urban space, go in search of the spaces in between, and explore how we can create new spaces or (re)occupy those previously undescribed. Whether through exploring the potential of the city’s many green areas, mapping the city space through sound, film, and text, or performing in the city streets—the possibilities for artistic dialogue with the urban space are endless, and we invite you to take part.

We offer a 50 Euro discount for multiple bookings, as well as a discount of 100 Euros to all Summer University and UdK Berlin alumni.

You can find a small selection of our workshops below. Discover all courses here.

Berlin’s diverse nature takes centre stage in Mireficating the Present—Aesthetics & Narratives of Peatlands. Berlin was built on a swamp – today, only few of these peatlands remain. This course investigates the moor as a common setting of ancient myths and narratives of doom, and contrasts this with the potential for new forms of use that Berlin’s moors may hold. Bubble, Splash and Drop—Water as an Object of Exploration takes the characteristics of water, its texture, its movements, and its sounds as the starting point for a performative research practice. Participants investigate the sonic qualities of the waves and develop choreographic elements from immersing their bodies in water.

The city streets become a space for artistic inspiration and creation in the workshop Performing the Streets / Re-claiming the City. Combining theoretical insights, guided exercises, and hands-on artistic practice, participants learn to work with the architectural layout of the city, and explore real and fictional stories within it. Similarly, OVERLAPS—Body and Sound Overlaps in Urban Areas focuses on the bodily experiences of urban space, and their translation into sound. In the workshop Post-Vandalism Garment participants search the streets of Berlin for discarded garments, repurpose them, and document this process through video.

Visit here for detailed information on our programme and its workshops, as well as the online application form. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact us: summer-courses [​at​] udk-berlin.de.

Course registration is open on our website. Application deadlines: four to six weeks before the start of each workshop.