Programmes

With exhibitions, talks, readings, films and educational programmes, our programmes create spaces for encounters, exchange and new perspectives. Various programme series connect the history of exile from 1933 to 1945 with questions of our time and invite visitors to reflect on democracy, belonging and social cohesion.

From Here – Fasanenstraße and Exile

With the exhibition "From Here," the Exilmuseum begins to engage with the building, the street and the neighbourhood in which it is being created. We are collecting the stories of people who once lived here and who, persecuted by the National Socialists, had to flee into exile. Visitors are invited to share their knowledge about people from the street and thus contribute to the ever-growing collection.

From Here

Stories of Exile from Fasanenstraße

Portrait of a Street

Portrait of a Street

About the mural by illustrator Carlo Stanga

From Fasanenstraße to Auschwitz

From Fasanenstraße to Auschwitz

With historian Atina Grossmann

Embassies of Exile

Life in exile is always connected to at least two countries. This international perspective shapes the Exilmuseum. For the programme "Embassies of Exile", it works with embassies in Germany and abroad. This creates new partnerships and a global network.

The series focuses on largely overlooked figures from the arts, literature and academia who found refuge from the National Socialists in the respective partner country. Each event is individually conceived, whether as a lecture, reading, concert, film screening or conversation with descendants.
The events take place at various locations in Germany and abroad: at the embassies themselves, in cultural institutions, academic institutions or at the Exilmuseum.

The programme was developed by Ruth Ur and Thomas Sparr. It is funded by the Berthold Leibinger Stiftung.

Speechless in Sweden?

Panel discussion

Speechless in Sweden?

With Aris Fioretos and Deniz Utlu

"The ground is burning beneath our feet."

Book presentation

"The ground is burning beneath our feet."

A Jewish family between Berlin, Santiago de Chile and the Litzmannstadt Ghetto

Einstein's Time Machine: The Life and Work of Composer Julia Kerr

Reading and Music

Einstein's Time Machine: The Life and Work of Composer Julia Kerr

Event at the Einstein House in Caputh

Education and Mediation

The Exilmuseum sees educational outreach as one of its central tasks and as an essential part of its social responsibility. Drawing on the experiences of people who fled Germany between 1933 and 1945 to escape National Socialism, the museum opens up spaces for historical learning, critical engagement and shared reflection on the present.

Our education and outreach programmes are aimed at people of all age groups, with different experiences and perspectives. Workshops, guided tours and participatory formats create opportunities to acquire knowledge, develop questions and enter into dialogue with one another. The education programme is continuously expanded and developed further.

Ein Foto von drei Koffern jeweils umrandt von einem Ring. Auf jedem Koffer steht je ein Gegenstand: Ein Spielzeugauto, ein Katzen-Stofftier und ein Hunde-Stofftier

Roots in the wind

Educational programme for children and school classes

At the ruins

In 2025, the Exilmuseum Foundation launched a new exhibition series featuring artistic installations at the ruins of the portal to the historic Anhalter Bahnhof. The installations engage with the site and its history, while also bringing the concept of exile from history into the present. The projects aim to strengthen Anhalter Bahnhof as a vibrant place of remembrance and culture.

The series is kindly supported by Deutsche Bahn AG and the Heinz
and Heide Dürr Foundation.

I Don't Have Another Land

Art installation

I Don't Have Another Land

by Nathan Coley

Music at World's End

Exile in Iceland

The first event in the “Embassies of Exile” programme series took place at the residence of the Icelandic Ambassador in Berlin. The evening was dedicated to the composer Victor Urbancic (1903–1958) and his family, who found refuge in Iceland while fleeing National Socialist persecution.

Photo: Tamara Eckhardt / Ostkreuz

Photo: Tamara Eckhardt / Ostkreuz

Photo: Tamara Eckhardt / Ostkreuz

The programme included a lecture by musicologist Árni Heimir Ingólfsson, shedding light on Urbancic’s lasting influence on Iceland’s musical landscape, as well as compositions by Victor Urbancic, performed by pianist Julia Tinhof. Another highlight was the presence of Sibyl Urbancic, the daughter of Victor and his wife Melitta. The eyewitness discussion was moderated by the Icelandic Ambassador, Auðunn Atlason.

We would like to thank all participants and guests, as well as the Icelandic Embassy, for an unforgettable evening that marked a wonderful start to the Embassies of Exile event series. Further information can be found under Programme.