It's Just a Matter of Time

All buildings hold the echoes of overlapping timelines within their walls. Every room, every crack in the façade, and every surrounding street bears traces of the lives they have sheltered and the moments they have witnessed. Strip away a layer of paint, and countless stories begin to surface. Similarly, art collections serve as guardians of time, holding within them the memories of generations and socio-political events. Through both the artworks they preserve and those they lack, collections document a present in flux.

Drawing on the layered history of the PalaisPopulaire, the exhibition It’s Just a Matter of Time explores the intersection of temporalities. Built in 1730 as two separate houses along Berlin’s fortress moat, the structures were united by Prussian architect Friedrich Wilhelm Diterichs with a central extension, creating a single palace. In 1788, it became a royal residence under the Prussian crown, housing, among others, the daughters of King Friedrich Wilhelm III and Queen Luise—Princesses Charlotte, Alexandrine, and Luise—earning it the name Prinzessinnenpalais since 1810. Over the centuries, it underwent continuous transformations shaped by the political and cultural shifts of each era. Years after the fall of the monarchy in 1918, it was first used as the Schinkel Museum in 1931, then for temporary exhibitions. In 1933, following the Nazi rise to power, over 20,000 books were burned at the nearby Opernplatz in a brutal act of cultural erasure.

With Berlin’s postwar division, the Palais became part of the German Democratic Republic. Situated near the Palace of the Republic—the GDR’s parliamentary seat from 1976 to 1990—it was at the center of the shifting ideologies of the Cold War. During this time it housed the Operncafé, boasting a lively disco that offered a vibrant escape within a rigid political system. After years of vacancy, the Palais reopened in 2018 as a contemporary art venue.

These layers of history form the backdrop for It’s Just a Matter of Time.  Conceived as a contemplative journey, the exhibition presents artistic positions from 1946 to today, featuring works from the Deutsche Bank Collection alongside selected loans. Acknowledging that buildings are embedded in broader urban and historical contexts, the exhibition continually draws connections between interior and exterior space. Extending beyond the gallery walls, it reinforces the idea that history is not confined within institutions but is embedded in the city itself.

Rather than illustrating history or striving for completeness, the exhibition It’s Just a Matter of Time traces echoes of the past—fragments that persist, resurface, and entwine with the present. In these absences, history is not merely recounted but felt, revealing time as a continuum where memory and experience remain ever-evolving.

Curated by Liberty Adrien & Carina Bukuts.

Artists: Kai Althoff, James Gregory Atkinson, Max Beckmann, Marianne Berenhaut, Heidi Bucher, Wisrah C. V. da R. Celestino, Christo, Tony Cokes, Latifa Echakhch, Ayşe Erkmen, Felix Gonzalez-Torres, Shilpa Gupta, Petrit Halilaj, Lena Henke, Julian Irlinger, Martin Kippenberger, Nancy Lupo, Cildo Meireles, Philippe Parreno, Manfred Paul, Julia Phillips, Adrian Piper, Cornelia Schleime, Georges Tony Stoll, Rosemarie Trockel, Rachel Whiteread, Kandis Williams.

Events
Curators’ tour: May 2, 4–5pm, with Liberty Adrien and Carina Bukuts

Lena Henke and Julian Irlinger artists talk: May 3, 2–3pm
In conversation with Carina Bukuts, as part of the Gallery Weekend Berlin

Ayşe Erkmen artist talk: June 4, 7–8pm
In conversation with curator Liberty Adrien

Cornelia Schleime artist talk: June 19, 7–8pm
In conversation with Sarah Alberti

James Gregory Atkinson artist talk: July 9, 7–8pm
In conversation with curator Carina Bukuts