Künstlerhaus invited its former managers and art directors Uli Bernhardt, Prof. Heidemarie von Wedel (Merz Acacademy) and Prof. Hermann Pitz (Art Academy Munich) to a conversation about the collaboration between Künstlerhaus and Büro Berlin during the 1980s.

Uli Bernhardt talked about the massive influence of the art districts Soho in New York City on the formation of Künstlerhaus. A crucial point was the combination of production (workshops), presentation (exhibitions) and reflection (discourse) under a single roof. In 1980, Heidemarie von Wedel organized a symposium on the question Künstlerhäuser – wozu? that dealt with the self-organization of creative production and presentation. Back then, representatives of Büro Berlin took part in the symposium which made the connection between Stuttgart and Berlin. Büro Belrin’s former employee Hermann Pitz talked about self-organized structures and the difficulties that they entail.