Berlin to Open the Anti-Tivoli

An amusement park in East Berlin, abandoned for the past 11 years, will be reopened this year as a haven for public art, writes Julie Ma.

1 minute read

April 13, 2012, 12:00 PM PDT

By Jonathan Nettler @nettsj


The amusement park, which opened as "Kulturpark Plänterwald" in 1969, was reborn as "Spreepark" when it was privatized after the fall of the Berlin Wall, and closed in 2011, is now home to graffiti covered dinosaur models, murky ponds, and overgrown grounds.

According to Ma, a curatorial team including George Scheer and Stephanie Sherman, directors of the Elsewhere museum in North Carolina; Spinello Projects founder Anthony Spinello; and Miami-based experimental artist Agustina Woodgate, hope to "use the ruins to shed light on Berlin's cultural history and imagine the city's future."

A series of workshops with creative thinkers are scheduled for June. "The results of the ideas from the workshops will be displayed in Kulturpark's public debut starting at the end of the month. After all that brainstorming, the team behind Kulturpark hopes to draw together a proposal for the site's future."

Wednesday, April 11, 2012 in Good

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Green vintage Chicago streetcar from the 1940s parked at the Illinois Railroad Museum in 1988.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails

Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

July 13, 2025 - WTTV

Blue and silver Amtrak train with vibrant green and yellow foliage in background.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail

The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

July 14, 2025 - Smart Cities Dive

Worker in yellow safety vest and hard hat looks up at servers in data center.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power

Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

July 18 - Inside Climate News

Former MARTA CEO Collie Greenwood standing in front of MARTA HQ with blurred MARTA sign visible in background.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns

MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

July 18 - WABE

Rendering of proposed protected bikeway in Santa Clara, California.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant

A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.

July 17 - San José Spotlight