Berlin is rightly famed for the wealth of its art collections, from the Alte Nationalgalerie’s memorable array of 19th century German and French Impressionists to the Gemäldegalerie’s absorbing assembly of 13th to 18th century paintings.
So impressive is the Gemäldegalerie that we will make two separate visits to its vast holdings, giving us ample time to appreciate Italian masters such as Raphael and Caravaggio and to admire important works by Breugel, Dürer and Rembrandt.
More intimate than the Gemäldegalerie is the Käthe Kollwitz Museum, with its moving series of drawings and sculptures, whilst the breadth of Picasso on display in the private collection of Heinz Berggruen is as surprising as it is riveting.
At Potsdam, Prussia’s Versailles, master builders and artists created an absorbing ensemble of palaces, parks and gardens over the course of three centuries. We will tour Frederick the Great’s exquisite Sanssouci Palace, its garden terraced like a ziggurat, and study the range of Italian, Dutch and Flemish masters in the flamboyant picture gallery.
Our tour will also consider the divide that used to exist between East and West, with visits to Checkpoint Charlie, the Reichstag, the historic Unter den Linden thoroughfare and Humboldt University. The focus of our trip, however, will be firmly on the city’s art treasures.
We stay throughout at the three-star Hotel Albrechtshof, situated on the River Spree in the heart of Berlin’s theatre district.
Date: October 15 – 21, 2010 |
Cost: £1390 |
Lecturer: Colin Bailey |
Course Code: BERP10 |
Itinerary
Day 1 Depart Heathrow 1250 on British Airways to Berlin, arriving 1540. Transfer to Hotel Albrechtshof for six nights. Evening lecture: Old Masters in Berlin.
Day 2 Tour of Berlin by coach: Potsdamer Platz, Checkpoint Charlie, Schinkel’s Neue Wache, Unter den Linden, Humboldt University, Memorial Church. Afternoon: Käthe Kollwitz Museum.
Day 3 Morning lecture: German 19th Century Painting followed by first visit to Gemäldegalerie (Italian paintings). Afternoon: Pergamon Museum (Greek and Roman collection), Bode Museum, Friedrichswerdersche Kirche (German 19th century sculpture).
Day 4 Morning lecture: Caspar David Friedrich followed by excursion to Grünewald (forest walk) with lunch at local restaurant. Afternoon: Alte Nationalgalerie (German 19th century pictures) with optional visits to Hackersche Höfe (typical 19th century courtyards) and synagogue. Evening free.
Day 5 Guided tour of Reichstag followed by walking tour of Berlin: Brandenburg Gate, Michael Wilford’s British Embassy, Adlon Hotel, Pariser Platz, recently-completed Holocaust Memorial. Afternoon: second visit to Gemäldegalerie (German, Flemish and Dutch pictures).
Day 6 Excursion to Potsdam: Frederick the Great’s Sanssouci Palace, park, picture gallery (Caravaggio, Rubens, van Dyck), Neues Palais (including Hall of Shells). Afternoon: Dutch quarter, Schinkel’s St Nikolai Church.
Day 7 Libeskind’s Jewish Museum and free time before transfer to airport for 1635 departure, arriving Heathrow 1730.
Cost
Cost of £1390 includes: return airfare, accommodation based on sharing a twin or double bedded room, breakfast & three dinners one lunch, excursions & admissions.
Not included: travel insurance, single room supplement £190.