Transdisciplinary summer programme

Get inspired at the Berlin Summer University of the Arts 2023: Starting in June, the Berlin University of the Arts (UdK) presents an international workshop programme aimed at artists, advanced students and graduates from all artistic disciplines. Registration is open.

This year’s focus on Translational Acts reflects the engaged dialogue between the disciplines at UdK Berlin. Artistic practice unfolds in the face of major social, political and technological transformation processes: questions of climate justice and sustainability, collectivity and diversity or digitization are aesthetically translated in manifold ways. Crossing, transgressing, transcribing, rewriting borders and limits represent central dynamics of the Berlin Summer University of the Arts and we invite you to take part.

The transdisciplinary workshop GLUE: Collective Improvising and Composing (August 28–September 1) aims to prepare creative situations in improvisation by learning interactive strategies. Out of the spontaneous situation may emerge a shared “moment-form” or a shape which is unique and unforeseeable. In Pause and Participate. Play and Photograph. (July 28–August 13), power relations inherent in the medium of photography will be discussed. A special focus will be put on participatory art practices. Performing artists will benefit from the bodywork techniques taught in Body as Maginifier (August 8–13), where basic concepts such as posture or breathing will be examined and explored anew.

At the heart of Berlin, participants will discover manifold ways of nurturing their artistic practice: Inspired by the playful strategies of the Dadaists and Situationists, ​A Situationist Guidebook to Every City (August 27–September 2) aims to (re)discover the city as an urban readymade with countless situations to play with. The fine arts workshop Transitions—Drawing and Space (August 28–September 1) explores transition spaces in Berlin and experiments with drawing in an open and interpretive manner. And in our Berlin Poster workshop (August 14–17), participants will discover the city of Berlin, translating their observations into risography posters which will find their way back into the public space. 

Ecological questions will be the focus of various workshops: Data Sculptures as Translational Acts (August 7–12) explores the intricacies of climate justice using physical data sculptures, while Drawing as a Way of Knowing—Insects (July 31–August 2) initiates an intensive study of insects that aims to deepen our understanding of their highly endangered world. 

Language is at the heart of the human condition and to use language is, inevitably, to translate. In the (mis-)translation club (September 11–15) workshop, participants will explore as many ways to translate a word as possible—not just into other languages, but into signs, images, photography, sound, dance, acting, smells. In Artspeak (August 21–24), participants can boost their English language skilles whilst discovering the Berlin art scene. 

View the whole programme here.