The highly anticipated Berlin Modern art museum is making significant construction progress as it approaches its ceremonial topping-out ceremony on October 17. The new museum, located in Berlin-Tiergarten at Matthäikirchplatz, represents one of Germany's most ambitious cultural projects and is set to transform the city's art landscape.
The museum is being constructed adjacent to the iconic New National Gallery, the Kulturforum, the Philharmonie, and the State Library. This strategic positioning aims to realize Scharoun's concept of a "city landscape" by creating an ensemble of interconnected cultural buildings. The project represents what Hermann Parzinger, former president of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, called a "flagship project" due to its ecologically sustainable design.
Construction began with the groundbreaking ceremony in December 2019, with the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation serving as the client. The architectural design comes from the renowned Swiss firm Herzog & de Meuron, the same architects behind Hamburg's famous Elbphilharmonie. Following the initial groundbreaking, workers excavated a construction pit approximately 16 meters deep across a foundation area of roughly 8,000 square meters, requiring the removal and transport of around 130,000 cubic meters of earth.
The foundation stone was ceremonially laid on February 9, 2024, in the presence of architect Jacques Herzog, Federal Commissioner for Culture Claudia Roth, New National Gallery Director Klaus Biesenbach, and Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner. A carpenter carried a "time capsule" to the foundation stone, which was then lifted into the construction pit using a crane. The museum will feature 9,000 square meters of exhibition space once completed.
Since the initial 2016 planning phase, the Berlin Modern has undergone significant design changes. The original concept featured a light, honeycomb-like exterior cladding, which has been removed in the current design as the most notable modification. The roof design has also been substantially altered, transitioning from the original concept to a dark pitched roof that better harmonizes with the iconic New National Gallery across the street. A large-scale photovoltaic system is planned for the roof installation.
The museum addresses a critical space constraint at the New National Gallery, where only a portion of the collection can be displayed at any given time due to limited space. Large-scale paintings are currently exhibited at the Hamburger Bahnhof or remain in storage, including major installations by artists such as Rebecca Horn and Anselm Kiefer. Berlin Modern will remedy this situation by housing approximately 5,000 works of 20th-century art, combining collections from East and West Germany along with numerous acquisitions and donations that have tripled the collection since the 1960s.
The two buildings will eventually be connected underground, though this connection is currently delayed by a high-voltage power line that is expected to be relocated by 2027. The museum's entrance design is deliberately understated, with the eastern entrance leading to freely accessible high-ceilinged spaces before visitors reach the actual museum galleries.
The project's budget has increased dramatically from the original 200 million euros to nearly 364 million euros, plus risk costs and construction price developments, making it the most expensive museum in Germany. The Federal Court of Auditors has criticized the construction as too expensive and environmentally harmful, though the federal government continues to finance the project. According to original plans, the museum should be completed by 2027.
Following the topping-out ceremony marking the completion of the shell construction, interior construction work can begin. Public visitors will have the opportunity to explore the shell construction during open tours on October 18 and 19, 2025, though advance booking of time-slot tickets is recommended due to limited capacity.
