Mercedes-Benz Contemporary

Haus Huth, Berlin, Fotograf: Vincent Mosch

The Mercedes-Benz Art Collection moved into the elaborately renovated Haus Huth at Potsdamer Platz – its first dedicated exhibition gallery – in 1999. The space measures about 600 m², and is called Mercedes-Benz Contemporary. It is used to showcase the highlights of the collection and our new acquisitions, with the exhibits renewed on a quarterly basis and complemented by shows of work by individual artists and by special exhibitions. Mercedes-Benz Contemporary is open 7 days per week, with no charge for admission. More than 45 exhibitions have been held here since 2001, all accompanied by in-depth catalogues that provide a context in art history terms. In addition to the usual temporary exhibition tours and talks by artists and curators, the Mercedes-Benz Contemporary offers workshops for children.

The Mercedes-Benz Contemporary is located at Haus Huth at Potsdamer Platz, which was built in 1912 based plans by the architects Conrad Heidenreich and Paul Michel for the Huth family. It is the only Imperial period Potsdamer Platz building to survive the war and the Wall almost unscathed. The steel skeleton construction method, which was very new at the time, was chosen in order to make it possible to accommodate a wine store on the second and third floor, and was also the reason why the building was able to withstand the air-raids. It was originally run as a restaurant, a wine merchant’s and wine-bar, and later became a home and warehouse. In 1990, the building, along with the Potsdamer Platz, came into the possession of Daimler-Benz, now Mercedes-Benz. Great care was needed to maintain and convert Haus Huth. The steel skeleton, the Kirchheim lacustrine limestone façade, the marble staircases and the heraldic room on the first floor of the building are all listed.