28.03.2019
Futurium to Open on 5 September 2019
With a grand opening ceremony on 5 September 2019, Futurium will go into operation. Situated directly on the River Spree, framed by Berlin’s central station and the Reichstag building, this house of futures invites visitors of all ages to take a glimpse into the world of tomorrow. For this purpose, visitors have at their disposal an exhibition, the Futurium Lab, and an events forum spread over more than 5,000 square metres. Admission to Futurium will be free of charge until the end of 2022, when its three-year test phase finishes.
A firm opening date has been set. On the evening of Thursday 5 September 2019, the Futurium will be opening its doors to the public. Its start will be marked by a grand opening ceremony, followed at the weekend (Friday 6 to Sunday 8 September) by an extensive programme of launch events. Futurium will present itself in all its variety – visitors can experience its exhibition of the future featuring the three dimensions human, nature and technology, as well as the Futurium Lab that will invite them to try things out and get involved, along with a diverse programme of events.
The opening ceremony celebrating the launch of Futurium will take place in the presence of Head of the Federal Chancellery Helge Braun and with invited guests in the afternoon of Thursday 5 September 2019.
Dr Stefan Brandt, the Director of Futurium, says:
“Futurium regards itself as a location open to everyone in today’s society for the exchange of views and perspectives on questions of the future. We wish to bring as many people as possible into contact with topics of the future and encourage them to participate in shaping our future. Therefore, we’re especially delighted with the decision to make admission free for the first three years. This makes the Futurium accessible to all those interested, regardless of the financial situation they find themselves in. In this way, we’ve found a special means to do justice to the Futurium’s guiding principle, namely, that the Future concerns us all.”
Therefore, we’re especially delighted with the decision to make admission free for the first three years.
With Futurium, Berlin is welcoming an interdisciplinary house of futures into the very heart of the city. Visitors of all age groups are invited to engage themselves with different concepts of and for the future, that is, with different futures. Futurium aims to provide space for the visions and approaches from science and research that help us solve the key challenges of the future, The question “How do we want to live?” always remains at the core of the issues under consideration.
The exhibition on the upper floor is divided into three large “thinking spaces” that focus on our future relationship with technology, with nature and with ourselves as human beings. Humanoid robots, greened skyscrapers, communal economies: the possible conceptions of the future are endless. The exhibition will introduce and discuss various proposals for possible futures against the background of such questions as: how do we want to work and live in the future? How do we want to deal with technological progress and shape it actively? What ethical and social consequences come with new developments? How can we find our full expression as individuals and conserve natural resources at the same time?
The Futurium Lab in the basement offers space for visitors to experiment, to work together with others, and to develop things for themselves. It features a workshop of the future that includes 3D printers, laser cutters, CNC milling machines and robot arms. The Showcase will present interactive and imaginative installations on topics such as biodesign, the architecture of the future or artificial intelligence. The Lab is also available for workshops and for the playful development of knowledge of the future.
The events programme provides impetus for the discussion of possible paths into a liveable future and the conducting of exciting debates on these topics. By means of the wide variety of participative formats, we wish to impart scientific content in a manner that stays close to real life. And at those points where rationality reaches its limits, the artistic confrontation with topics of the future enables new approaches.