Staatliche Museen zu Berlin

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The James-Simon-Galerie Attracts More Than 40,000 Visitors on Its Opening Weekend

15.07.2019
James-Simon-Galerie

On Saturday 13 July 2019, the James-Simon-Galerie opened its doors to the public with a diverse programme of events and activities. The rush to the Museumsinsel was enormous, with thousands of visitors continuing to flood into the new central entry building on the following Sunday. In total, more than 40,000 visitors took up the invitation to visit the new building on this fine summer weekend – surpassing all expectations.

The opening festivities offered a comprehensive programme of activities for children, families and adults alike. Visitors explored the James-Simon-Galerie on a whole host of architectural tours, curators’ tours and the discovery tours. In exhibition conversations and workshops, museum-goers were able to learn interesting facts about the architecture of the new building and the highlights of the Neues Museum and the Pergamonmuseum.

By midday, more than 13,000 visitors had already entered the James-Simon-Galerie, from where they made their way into the Pergamonmuseum and the Neues Museum. For the James-Simon-Galerie now serves as the sole entry point to the Pergamonmuseum, and via the underground Archaeological Promenade, as one of two points of entry to the Neues Museum. Over the entire weekend, almost 15,500 people visited these two institutions.

James-Simon-Galerie

As the new visitor centre for the Museum Island, the building serves all visitors (individuals, tourist groups, and school groups) and contains ticket desks selling tickets for all museums, information desks, a café, and the central museum gift shop. In addition to a large area used for ticket sales, information and checkrooms, the James-Simon-Galerie also accommodates a lecture auditorium, and special exhibitions spaces.

The café can also be accessed outside the museum business hours.

Exhibition "Near Life"

The Gipsformerei, Berlin’s plaster casting workshop, celebrates this year the 200th anniversary of its foundation. Starting on 30 August 2019 the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin lay on a special exhibition, "Near Life. The Gipsformerei - 200 Years of Casting Plaster", to showcase the technique of taking casts from life or nature. Handed down since the days of antiquity, this technique has been in use throughout the centuries to achieve close sculptural approximations to life.